Steelers player calls out Mike Tomlin's training-camp practice habits

The Pittsburgh Steelers have started the 2025 NFL season with a 3-1 record, and the team is currently alone atop the AFC North as it heads into their bye week. Pittsburgh played in Dublin, Ireland in Week 4, so the franchise got the first bye week of the season in Week 5. Many fans hate an early bye week, but this one seems like it was much needed for the Steelers. The defense is riddled with injuries, especially in the secondary. This extra time off allows Pittsburgh time to recover and get healthy while also figuring out how to capitalize on the momentum the team currently has.

Pittsburgh's secondary has been destroyed throughout the start of the 2025 season. Both DeShon Elliott and Joey Porter Jr. each left the Week 1 contest early, with Elliott returning in Week 4. Porter will hopefully return in Week 6. These are two crucial starters in the secondary for the Steelers, and their presence has clearly been missed.

Elliott appeared on the most recent episode of "The Christian Kuntz Podcast", and the two chopped it up about the season so far. Elliott revealed that he wasn't fully healthy for the game against the Minnesota Vikings, and Kuntz then asked him what percentage of players are not fully healthy on a week-to-week basis.

"98% of us aren't usually healthy," Elliott said. "Especially with the training camp we go through here. Like, you know, by the time Week 1 comes around fam, you might be at 75% Week 1, and then you might get back 85%, 90% once the bye week comes around. Then the rest of the season, you're trying to maintain that. But for the most part, you're never going to go into a game healthy."

Elliott suffered a knee injury in Week 1 and made his return in Ireland against the Minnesota Vikings. He had a great game, but he revealed he was not fully healthy and he is still rehabbing his knee. This prompted the conversation, and Elliott seemed to insinuate players in Pittsburgh are more worn down once the regular season begins due to the way the team practices during training camp.

Head coach Mike Tomlin is notorious for running intense practices during training camp. The Steelers are one of the few teams in the league that fully hit during practices as often as they do, which is something that the franchise takes some pride in. However, there is a downfall, and that is players getting worn down as the season gets closer. Surely the franchise has a way to mitigate all of the danger of practicing live and the team likely does it in the safest way possible, but it is still going to take a toll on the players.

Thankfully the Steelers now have their bye week, as it is probably possible that some guys are still trying to recover from some bumps and bruises that they obtained back in Latrobe.

Steelers' DeShon Elliott Still Loves Mike Tomlin

Although players might be put at more risk due to the way Pittsburgh practices during training camp, the players still love Tomlin. He is one of the most well-respected coaches in the NFL and players around the league would love to play for him. Elliott mentioned that he never really gets too close to coaches as he does not trust them, but that is not the case between him and Tomlin. He can tell the coach cares about his players, which is something that is different based on the other places he has been in his NFL career.