Steelers Camp Takeaways: Will Howard, Kaleb Johnson Big Winners

The Steelers put the pads on just a few days ago and when backs-on-backers started, everyone was curious about the starting point for third-round rookie running back Kaleb Johnson. Quickly, we all found out it was pretty bad.

Johnson lost to Malik Harrison three times during the first padded practice, with his only win of the drill coming against seventh-round pick Carson Bruener.

But things changed. Just two days later, Johnson held his own against Harrison and then ended up beating Mark Robinson twice in the same drill. That improvement has to be lovely to see for the Steelers, as Johnson's biggest question mark coming into the league was his pass blocking.

He's still got a ways to go, but in 48 hours, the improvement was vast.

Will Howard Still Looking Good

The Steelers rookie quarterback had his best day on Thursday and then came back for Friday Night Lights and did it again. Still working with the third team, Howard completed a couple of very nice throws, including one near the seem to Lance McCutchen.

This is back-to-back days of impressive throws for Howard, who didn't give much to talk about the first week of training camp. For the first six days, it was just that he looked comfortable within the offense. Now, it's about how he's making plays.

Maybe that continues, or maybe it doesn't. Nothing will change for the depth chart as he's not surpassing Mason Rudolph, who has also looked good. But it does spark the conversation about how much growth he can show before the end of camp, and what it means for his future on the team.

Steelers Best Two Offensive Linemen

The Steelers best two offensive linemen right now are Mason McCormick and Troy Fautanu. The two have had almost no issues, have been able to hold their own against names like Derrick Harmon, Keeanu Benton and T.J. Watt, which brings some ease to a group with a lot of question marks.

McCormick dominated one-on-one drills, not losing a rep the entire drills. Fautanu held his own too, but has made good work against Watt during team drills, being able to keep the superstar edge rusher away from Aaron Rodgers.

There are big questions to their offensive line right now, and we'll dive into Broderick Jones next. But McCormick and Fautanu look like key pieces to their foundation.

Broderick Jones Has Struggled

Broderick Jones doesn't look good. There's been almost no moments during camp where he's impressed, with his latest practice maybe being his worst.

Jones, who is dealing with a groin injury, took on Alex Highsmith during one-on-one drills. Three times in a row, Highsmith made Jones look easy, with his second rep getting to the backfield nearly untouched.

Jones has gotten beat by Highsmith and Nick Herbig all of camp, and things are starting to get concerning with his play. At this point, you have to wonder if he's going to be a detriment to the group once the season starts.

Two Minute Drill

The Steelers did their first two minute drill of training camp, and it did not go well for the offense. With the first team out there, Aaron Rodgers had his first pass battled down, followed by a false start, missing Pat Freiermuth over the middle and then a drop by Jaylen Warren. From there, Nick Herbig batted the ball down at the line of scrimmage and DK Metcalf dropped a pass down the sideline.

And just like that, the offense was off the field. It took like than 30 seconds.

Mason Rudolph led the second team offense and had them moving for awhile before it ended with a James Pierre interception in the endzone. Now, the defense won, but Rudolph hit a ball off Lance McCutchen's helmet as he was walking into the endzone. That was on the wide receiver for missing the ball, and if he catches it, the final score is 1-1 not 0-2.