Reporting Day Blues … nothing happens
Reporting Day has just about all the ingredients of a full-blown sports holiday, except one:
Nothing happens.
Oh, they report all right. The Steelers reported Friday amid immense hype. They had to be there by 3 p.m., so to greet them the media was allowed to stand in front of the players鈥� dorm at 11 a.m.
That鈥檚 where all the pre-camp excitement comes to a boil. Except for me.
This is my 19th training camp, and in those 19 years I really don鈥檛 think I鈥檝e witnessed anything more important on this day than the annual parade of fancy cars, trucks, tractors and this time an off-road dump truck, courtesy of Brett Keisel.
On some Reporting Days you think you can tell a player鈥檚 fitness level, but I鈥檝e praised Casey Hampton when he鈥檚 been grossly overweight and I鈥檝e ripped him when he鈥檚 been at his most fit.
Casey used to laugh at my guesses, as did Levon Kirkland, so now I just wait to see them on the field.
But the players talk. Do they ever. Of course they don鈥檛 say anything, but would this year be different?
I hoped so, particularly when five steps after checking into media central I crossed paths with tight ends coach James Daniel. He never says much, but I felt a beam of karma coming my way, and this time I was going to get the scoop on Heath Miller鈥檚 recovery from his torn ACL.
How鈥檚 it going coach?
鈥淕辞辞诲.鈥�
How鈥檚 Heath doing?
鈥淕辞辞诲.鈥�
And James Daniel kept right on walking.
So, I did too, right up to Rooney Hall where Plaxico Burress had just stepped out of his car with a suitcase in one hand and a pillow in the other.
Plax, how was your speed, your explosiveness, your burst last spring?
I asked him this because I thought Burress appeared to be deep into the aging process this past spring. I thought he looked slow. He didn鈥檛 see it that way.
鈥淚 felt OK,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 was kind of taking it easy.鈥�
Hmmm.
Can you be anything more than a red-zone threat this season?
鈥淚 believe so,鈥� he said. 鈥淚鈥檓 just here to compete.鈥�
But not answer questions.
Matt Spaeth arrived about that time, so I moved from the mob of reporters surrounding Burress to the mob surrounding Spaeth. He just might be able to provide some insight on Miller, who, like Ben Roethlisberger and Troy Polamalu, is way too smart and experienced to enter the front door on Reporting Day.
But Spaeth didn鈥檛 know anything about Miller, either.
鈥淗e鈥檚 so professional that I don鈥檛 know his timeline,鈥� Spaeth said.
Maurkice Pouncey, of course, was another of the interesting topics on Reporting Day, but I had arrived too late. Pouncey was the first Steeler to arrive, and he told those most energetic reporters that 鈥渕anning up is always important.鈥�
But in 鈥渕anning up,鈥� about how he absurdly supported murder-suspect Aaron Hernandez, all Pouncey really said was 鈥淟et鈥檚 move off from that鈥� and 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to get into that.鈥�
Ah, who could blame him? But one of these days, in a one-on-one moment, I鈥檓 going to ask him this question:
What in the world were you thinking?
But on this day, no information was passed. I mean I couldn鈥檛 even get Mike Adams to say whether he was ready to practice.
鈥淵ou鈥檒l have to ask coach,鈥� he said, and coach Mike Tomlin gladly offered up that Adams, who was stabbed in the abdomen six weeks ago, 鈥渉as full clearance鈥� to practice, and that he will.
See, even when they know something, players don鈥檛 want to give it up on Reporting Day, not in front of 20 TV cameras, 30 radio stations and 145 pod-phones, or whatever one calls the technology that relays the answers to all of my questions to everyone on the 鈥榥et before I can even sit down to write.
Not to be bitter.
But I did ask Kelvin Beachum if he鈥檚 learned all 12 positions on offense. He laughed, which might鈥檝e been the most honest moment of the day.
Speaking of honesty, there鈥檚 David DeCastro. His honesty isn鈥檛 so much in his words but on his face, as in, 鈥淚 hate the media.鈥�
But DeCastro seems to have made strides. In fact, I asked him about being overpowered by Geno Atkins late last season, and after ducking I heard DeCastro say, 鈥淗e鈥檚 a good player. Yeah. But this is a new year. I feel a lot better than I did then.鈥�
There even seemed to be a sparkle in DeCastro鈥檚 eyes, as if he really didn鈥檛 want to hop inside Keisel鈥檚 dump truck and run us all over. DeCastro actually didn鈥檛 mind talking.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got a good group of guys,鈥� he said of the offensive line. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a young group of guys. We have a good time together. We all get along really well. We鈥檙e looking forward to working and grinding.鈥�
And, really, that鈥檚 all anyone really wants to know at this camp: Can an inexperienced group of linemen, who came to the team with high pedigrees, come together quickly and formidably?
鈥淗ey, we鈥檙e hoping to be getting back to having a great run game,鈥� said running back Isaac Redman. 鈥淎nd the offensive line has been doing a great job working out all off-season. They鈥檝e been in Pittsburgh, most of them, and I鈥檓 excited for this season.鈥�
Really?
鈥淵eah, absolutely I鈥檓 excited,鈥� Redman said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got young guys who can move around.鈥�
Redman was so absolutely excited about the potential of this offensive line, and therefore this running game, that he came up with the money quote of the day:
鈥淥ur expectation is always Super Bowl or die,鈥� Redman said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not a team that鈥檚 looking to make the playoffs. We鈥檙e always a team looking to win the championship.鈥�
Yet I knew this coming into Reporting Day 鈥�13. We all knew this, just like we all knew what was talked about and not talked about. But you show up anyway and you hope.
Hey, the pads will be on soon enough.
Real information awaits.