Wednesday, October 30
Time to recharge: With the Steelers having the bye this week, it gives players a long four-day weekend to relax, reflect and recharge before heading into the second half of the season.
And for linebacker Alex Highsmith, it's perfect timing. Highsmith returned to action the last two weeks after missing a three-game stretch with a groin injury.
While he is back in full form, the rest definitely doesn't hurt before the Steelers return to prepare for the Washington Commanders and quarterback Jayden Daniels.
"It's a good weekend get your body right and really recover," said Highsmith. "You've got to get your proper rest and just go into this bye week, a week to reflect as well. We had a good film session today, just looking at things that we could do better because we know a lot of things that hurt us in the game are things that we were doing well, weren't detailed enough.
"And then next week coming in, I'll focus on Washington. We know we've got a tough game going against Washington and Jayden Daniels. They've been playing really good football. We know we've just got to bring our A-game. This week is important to look at ourselves and just focus on us and what we can do better and then transition to the next week."
The back half of the schedule includes all six AFC North games, a rarity for the Steelers to not have played a division game yet. And while Highsmith knows what those games mean, he also knows as far as the schedule goes, Washington is the team on their mind.
"I think those are always the games that you look for, especially in our division, playing in the AFC North," said Highsmith. "We know that those games are going to be high intensity like they always are. But Washington is just our main focus right now. And then those games are going to come. We know we've got to bring our A-game for those too."
Highsmith, as well as others on defense, felt like they didn't play their best game against the Giants on Monday night, and plan on stepping it up in the second half of the season.
"Even though we won the other night, it felt like we didn't play well at all the defensive side of the ball," said Highsmith. "We still have areas we can grow in, and we've just got to continue to get better. We can't be complacent. We can't get comfortable because we've got a lot of tough games, a lot of tough ball ahead of us.
"We know our ultimate goal. We know we've got to always want to get better and have that championship detail."
It's the culture: The message on the t-shirt says it all.
'The Culture…Takeaways.'
And for the Steelers defense, that truly is the culture.
The Steelers are currently ranked second in the NFL in takeaways/giveaways with a +10, but lead the league overall with 15 takeaways, including 10 interceptions and five fumble recoveries.
And when you get one of those takeaways, you get the shirt. And it's something the players treasure.
"When you get one (takeaway), it's gold. When you get a few like me, it's black. Me and T.J. (Watt) got the black shirts now," said cornerback Donte Jackson, who has three interceptions this season. "I think Beanie (Bishop) is going to get him a black shirt too.
"It's a culture here. They make it fun around here to want to go get the ball. It's cool to see guys just make a routine tackle, still trying to punch out the ball. I think it's just the culture is in the air.
"It's the spirit. It's the nature. It's the standard. We work at it every day. We talk about it every day and we congratulate it every day. We don't go through a practice without a guy getting a turnover, and he's not getting congratulated. It's just a culture here. I'm honored to be part of it and I'm honored to be able to take some away myself.
"It does a lot. It makes it more than just about getting the ball out. It makes it more about guys coming together, guys congratulating you. They make it a culture here, they make it fun, different colored shirts and you getting all this love for practice takeaways. It kind of makes it more real when you go in the game, and you get it and now you see everybody celebrating. You see everybody run into the end zone and stuff like that. I just think that the reward from it has made it a big deal, made it the culture."
Linebacker Alex Highsmith agrees that it is all the culture, one that starts when the team is at Saint Vincent College for training camp.
"It starts with the foundation in Latrobe," said Highsmith. "We have a great ball search culture, a great takeaway culture. I think that's something that you just always want to get better at. Going into divisional play, we know that a lot of those games are going to be close games and hard-fought games, so we know the turnovers and our culture is going to get us out of those games. We've just got to continue to sharpen that sword."
Feeling optimistic: Linebacker Nick Herbig has missed the last three games with a hamstring injury, but he is hoping he is back on the field soon.
Herbig said on Wednesday he is 'optimistic' about returning, but still has to get on the field and see how things are.
"I'm optimistic about it," said Herbig. "We're going to get out there and see how I feel."
When asked if he is itching to get back out there with his teammates, Herbig smiled and gave a simple answer.
"I'm ready," he said.
While no player likes to miss time, Herbig said he has enjoyed watching his teammates succeed over the last few weeks.
"I love watching my teammates play," said Herbig. "Especially when T.J. (Watt) and Alex (Highsmith) make plays and you see other guys, like Beanie Bishop, making plays. It just brings a smile to your face because you know how hard those guys work and it comes to fruition on Sunday when the lights are on."
And Watt has definitely made his share of plays. He was named the AFC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against the Giants on Monday Night Football, something that doesn't come as a surprise with the role he plays on the defense.
"He's a catalyst and takes charge," said Herbig. "You obviously see plays that he makes, and it constantly shows up. And Mike T (Coach Mike Tomlin) likes to say it's not a lightning strike because the guy does it day in and day out consistently, whether it's in the weight room or on the field, you know, he's going to work harder than everybody."
He said it: Joey Porter Jr. on his dad, Steelers legend Joey Porter Sr., doing the Terrible Towel Twirl at the game on Monday night:
"That was cool. Him coming out the tunnel, doing the kick. I told you couldn't get his knee up as high as he used to be. But he looked good. He was pumped up. He got the crowd in it."
Always thinking ahead: For Donte Jackson, the words below aren't something he is going to be thinking about for a while.
"I used to tell the players that professional football is a part-time profession. I used to tell them it gets you ready for your life's work."
– Hall of Fame Coach Chuck Noll
While Jackson never saw Noll coach a game, and he wasn't even born when Noll retired after the 1991 season, the words above that Noll used to share with his players somehow, someway might have trickled into Jackson's train of thought, without him even knowing it.
Because if there is one player who is using his playing days to prepare for his 'life's work,' it's Jackson.
And I learned this in just a simple conversation about his advice to young players.
Jackson gave a detailed analysis of what he has seen from multiple rookies and second year players, so I had to ask about how observant he is, how knowledgeable he is about the skills of his teammates, down to the last detail.
He smiled, and his eyes lit up talking about his passion.
"My next dream job is to work in scouting, be a general manager and stuff like that," said Jackson. "So, I'm very observant when it comes to what I'm watching in practice and what I'm watching on film and stuff like that.
"I watch film from a different type of eye, just from what I can observe and stuff like that. These young guys here make it easy to observe and to kind of fall in love with what they're doing out there. The guys I talk about, the guys I watch, they are just popping off film so it kind of makes it easy."
The passion isn't something new for the six-year veteran. It's something that started early in his NFL career.
"Since probably my third year in the league, I've been looking at that side of the game," said Jackson. "I watch how guys carry themselves, from scouts to GMs to assistant GMs and stuff like that. I've always been like a kid when it comes to just observing, scouting and just building a report on guys.
"That's kind of my job at my position. I get a matchup at the beginning of the week of 'D-Jack, you're going to be following this guy.' So, that's kind of what I'm doing throughout the week. Getting a scouting report on a guy just kind of seeing the ins and outs of how they like to play, how they like to use them.
"I think that's kind of the goes with the scouting world. That made me fall in love more with what they do, because it's kind of what I do too on a normal work week."
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