STEPHON TUITT
Defensive End
When the team still was living at Saint Vincent College, defensive coordinator Keith Butler identified five players he said had to come up big for his unit to be what it will have to be to be a part of a championship run this season by the Steelers. One of the players identified by Butler was Stephon Tuitt, and in what's perceived to be the most important preseason game, Tuitt turned in his best performance of the summer.
In the first half of the Steelers' 16-6 victory over the Tennessee Titans today at Heinz Field, Tuitt had two tackles, a sack, two hits on the quarterback and one tackle for loss. He was a disruptive presence throughout a first half in which the defense allowed only 24 yards rushing and four first downs.
Tuitt is the Steelers Digest Player of the Week.
Also considered were Vince Williams, who had three tackles, including one for loss, plus a sack; Cam Heyward, who had two tackles and a sack; Terrell Edmunds, who had four tackles and an interception; Jaylen Samuels, who had 41 yard rushing on 11 carries, four catches for 36 yards, and he also was a presence in pass protection; James Conner, who had 18 yards on 10 carries, six catches for 52 yards, and also was a presence in pass protection; Matthew Thomas, who led the team with seven tackles on defense and added two more on special teams; Chris Boswell, who was 3-for-3 on field goal attempts – from 42, 33, and 45 yards; and Justin Hunter, who had two catches for 37 yards, including a 32-yard touchdown where he did a nice job of getting two feet inbounds along the sideline in the end zone.
