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The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Senquez Golson in the second round of the 2015 NFL Draft in the hope he’d become a versatile playmaker in the defensive secondary. As everyone knows by now, Golson couldn’t stay healthy and he’s now out of the NFL.
What no one saw coming was that Golson’s college teammate, Mike Hilton, would find his way to Pittsburgh and become the exact player the Steelers saw in Golson — and then some.
Hilton has become much more than just a slot cornerback for the Black-and-gold — he’s becoming a very versatile weapon for Keith Butler’s defense.
Throughout this training camp, Hilton has shown last year’s performance wasn’t a fluke. On the contrary, he’s proven his ceiling is even higher.
This might seem like a stretch considering he finished 2017 with 64 tackles, 4 sacks and 2 interceptions, but the Steelers have been deploying Hilton in a variety of ways heading into 2018. Slot cornerback, tremendous blitzer and now even as a deep safety. Regardless of the situation or position, it seems all Hilton does is make plays.
When you look at the Steelers’ defensive roster, Hilton is slowly becoming one of the most important pieces in the overall puzzle. Can he step up his game from his 2017 performance? I wouldn’t bet against him.
Now it’s time to dive into some other nuggets from the Steelers’ latest training camp practice:
Bad JuJu
JuJu Smith-Schuster didn’t have the best practice today, and left the workout early with his knee wrapped in ice.
Ben Roethlisberger overthrows JuJu Smith-Schuster, who apparently ran the wrong route for at least second time today already. Roethlisberger looks at Randy Fichtner and said, “His mind isn’t right today.” @TheAthleticPGH
— Mark Kaboly (@MarkKaboly) August 4, 2018
Rocky stretch for JuJu Smith-Schuster, who punted a football out of frustration after a missed touchdown chance Friday night, then failed to convert a sideline throw Saturday that drew Ben Roethlisberger’s visible frustration.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) August 4, 2018
JuJu Smith-Schuster didn't take part in the final couple drills of practice and had an ice bag on his knee. He's been pretty solid all of training camp other than a hiccup here and there. Actually, he's not the only WR who has been a little off at times when it comes to details.
— Mark Kaboly (@MarkKaboly) August 4, 2018
2-minute Drill
The Steelers unleashed the two-minute drill work today, and here’s a rough recap of how it turned out:
Steelers two-minute drill was fast-paced -- ball starts at midfield, about 1:40 on clock:
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) August 4, 2018
By unofficial count:
Roethlisberger: 5-of-7, TD to James Washington in corner
Dobbs: 3-of-6 with scramble, no TD (three nice throws but stalled in RZ)
Rudolph: 5-of-6, TD to Jaylen Samuels
To see video from practice, and especially the two-minute drill, click HERE.
VIDEOS
#LIVE: Coach Tomlin addresses the media following practice at #SteelersCamp. https://t.co/yo6qIxcmng
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 4, 2018
B.J. Finney gives an in-depth look at his mentality, what he's learned from Ramon Foster, looking back on his first start and much more. pic.twitter.com/1kCzAYrEgf
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 5, 2018
Swish‼️ pic.twitter.com/vHRZ1n3tjp
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 5, 2018
PHOTOS
QBs making the fans happy today. pic.twitter.com/WRz47A5uYx
— Teresa Varley (@Teresa_Varley) August 5, 2018
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) August 4, 2018
.@steelers @JamesWashington goes up over Jamar Summers for two different touchdowns and Trey Griffey with a diving touchdown catch past Cameron Sutton during practice. pic.twitter.com/QIa7rFYuNB
— Charles Palla (@ChazPalla) August 4, 2018