LATROBE - Russell Wilson once again did not participate in any action in Friday's practice here at Saint Vincent College, but the quarterback isn't concerned at all about the calf issue that has left him sidelined for the first two days of Steelers training camp.
After Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin again decided to have Wilson sit out with Justin Fields taking first-team reps, Wilson said the issue was a minor one.
"I want to get back today, yesterday," Wilson said. "But coach is like 'Listen, we've got time.' And I got a lot of reps in the offseason, so we're just trying not to rush it.
"I hate not practicing. (Tomlin) was laughing. He's like, 'I enjoy this. You've got to wait a second.' And all of that. So, it was funny. I think that coach and the trainers are just being super careful, just so nothing gets worse or nothing happens."
Wilson, 35, is in his first season with the Steelers. But so are veteran backups Justin Fields and Kyle Allen along with undrafted rookie John Rhys Plumlee. So not having Wilson participate in a couple of practices has afforded the other quarterbacks more opportunities to get reps they would not normally have gotten.
And with nearly 200 career NFL starts under his belt, Wilson understands how to take mental reps even when he's not the one throwing the ball.
"The good thing is I'm getting a lot of mental reps and throwing stuff on the side and the post-practice work," Wilson said, adding that if the Steelers were playing a game, he would certainly be able to participate.
In the meantime, Wilson will continue to watch until Tomlin deems him ready to get back into the huddle. He also can help mentor Fields, whom the Steelers acquired in the offseason via a trade with the Chicago Bears.
"There's some really great plays, and there are plays that he responds back to, and this and that," said Wilson, who has missed just four career starts due to injury over 12 seasons. "So that's part of practice, and he's doing a good job. He's a really good competitor. He processes it well, and he's a tremendous young talent, for sure."
But it's been Wilson who Tomlin tabbed as being in "pole position" to be the Steelers' starter who is expected to open the season as the team's quarterback – as long as he stays away from the sleds during conditioning drills, which is where he said his injury occurred.
• Dale Lolley is co-host of "SNR Drive" on Steelers Nation Radio. Subscribe to the podcast here: Apple Podcast | iHeart Podcast
"We were doing a sled-push thing, and I just tweaked it a little bit," Wilson said of Wednesday's conditioning test. "It was the fourth, fifth time we did the sled push, I felt a little something.
"I feel good. It's nothing to panic about or to worry about at all."
