Camp Blog: All the news from Week 1

Aug 09, 2020 at 10:00 AM

Teresa Varley

Steelers.com

Sunday, August 9

Snell loves his job: With his second training camp underway, and his rookie year behind him, Benny Snell is focused on one thing.

Taking his game to the next level in 2020.

And how will he get there?

"I need to work on everything," said Snell. "I need to focus on being a better route-runner, a better pass protector, knowing pass pro and blitzes better. How the pass plays and run plays are run so I know the sweet spots, just being ahead of the game.

"There is always a way you can get better or an edge on your opponent when you are preparing for guys during the week. Film, getting the reps you can in practice, taking care of my body has been a big thing for me. A lot of those things tie in to how you play the game. It's huge and it's my job.

"And I love my job."

You could see that love he has for football just in the way he played last season, with a solid rookie campaign. The fourth-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft finished the season with 108 carries for 426 yards and two touchdowns, including a 98-yard performance at Cincinnati in Week 12.

"I think I did decent as a rookie, contributing with the chances I had in front of me," said Snell. "I feel like there is a lot of growth for me, a lot of things I can get better at via offense and special teams."

Snell went through the rookie learning curve on and off the field last year. There was the disappointment of not getting much work in the running game early in the season, to his injury that forced him to miss three games, to breaking out and becoming a big part of the offense. There were so many lessons to learn, and he took them all in.

"The biggest lesson I learned is you have to forget about the negative plays or the negative things that try to affect your play when you are on the field," said Snell. "I learned really fast in the NFL you have to be a kind of forget guy. It's always about moving on to the next play and staying focused on winning the game and the long haul of the season."

That, however, is easier said than done.

"It definitely is hard because you are really anxious to see success when you are at practice going through it with the guys," said Snell. "It's a long road and it's a rollercoaster. It's all about staying level."

With the way things played out at running back in 2019 with injuries, staying level was paramount because nobody knew when their number would be called. Snell missed three games due to an injury, Jaylen Samuels missed two games and James Conner missed six games and portions of others.

"I never experienced anything like that," said Snell. "It was different. But I love the way when a guy would go down, or a few guys went down, other guys were able to step up and fill the roles. Then we had guys who were able to come back, and we were using the whole room. That was an amazing thing I got to be a part of and witness. I am happy with how we handled the ups and downs."

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Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Eric Ebron (85) poses for a photo during the Steelers 2020 media day, Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2020 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers)