LATROBE, Pa. -- A daily review of the hot topics coming out of Pittsburgh Steelers training camp:
As Mike Tomlin walked past a cluster of reporters during the Bills-Steelers joint practice Wednesday, the eighth-year coach made a comment about the media wanting to see a fight. "You guys are worse than ambulance chasers," Tomlin said with a laugh but also a bit of an edge. It later became apparent why he made the caustic observation. Tomlin is sensitive to the negative media attention generated by the brawl that broke out Tuesday between the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys during a joint practice. That is why he was so pleased that there were only a couple of minor incidents in the first of two joint practices between the Steelers and the Bills. "I thought it was great etiquette. I appreciate the restraint and professionalism by both teams," Tomlin said. "That doesn't get reported often enough. We look to turn on the TV and see gory, unfortunate incidents happen [like] between Dallas and Oakland. We're here to prove teams are capable of doing it in a productive and professional manner."
The Steelers may have suffered their first significant loss at training camp. Veteran long snapper Greg Warren sustained a leg injury that Tomlin said may be serious. The Steelers will know more about his status Thursday, Tomlin said. Warren joins quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, tight end Heath Miller, safety Troy Polamalu and cornerback Ike Taylor as the only players on the Steelers who were on the Super Bowl-winning teams in 2005 and 2008. Bryce Davis is the only other long snapper in camp, and he also plays tight end.
Fullback Will Johnson and safety Will Allen each left practice with hamstring issues though Tomlin said neither is serious. Linebacker Vince Williams did not practice because of a concussion and left guard Ramon Foster watched drills with his left knee wrapped. Foster left practice early Tuesday with swelling in his knee. Also not practicing were outside linebacker Jarvis Jones, linebacker Jordan Zumwalt and tight end Matt Spaeth.
Wide receiver Derek Moye made one of the plays of the day when he caught a back-shoulder pass against Bills starting cornerback Stephon Gilmore. The grab came in one-on-one drills and Moye outfought Gilmore, a former No. 1 draft pick, for the ball.
Some personnel notes: Cody Wallace played left guard with the first-team offense with Foster out. Mike Adams played both right and left tackle. Chris Carter played right outside linebacker with the first-team defense with Jarvis Jones out and Markus Wheaton and Dri Archer returned punts.
The Steelers' ground game struggled as none of their backs found much running room. Archer was swallowed up by a host of Bills defenders on several outside runs. Josh Harris caught Tomlin's wrath after one run with Tomlin barking at him to hit the hole harder.
The Steelers added another running back to their roster when they signed rookie Stephen Houston. The 6-0, 225-pounder had been with the New England Patriots until getting released earlier this week. Houston rushed for 2,304 yards and 25 touchdown in three seasons at Indiana.
The Steelers finish camp Thursday with another joint practice with the Bills. It starts at 5:30 p.m. ET and it will be the last chance for fans to watch practice. The Steelers break camp Friday and play the Bills on Saturday night at Heinz Field.
