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Myles Jack heard the call of the Pittsburgh Steelers after their worst showing against the run in franchise history last year.
Jack also heard the call of Najee Harris for the first rep of the ultra-physical backs-on-backers drill that traditionally marks the first day of live hitting at training camp.
And Harris stood Jack up, as the newcomer at inside linebacker got a feel for his new environment. However, the best was yet to come.
Jack waited 26 reps to get his second chance to blitz a blocking back. And this time he was ready. The relatively tame corner of the practice field erupted into violence when fullback Derek Watt stepped up to take on Jack.
The two collided to produce a sound that may not have been heard there since the days of LaMarr Woodley and Lawrence Timmons. Initially, Watt took the violence to Jack, but Jack ran him over and proceeded to the actor who was playing quarterback.
Timmons once put a young fullback in a neck brace after a meeting in this drill, and Jack appeared to have hurt his back a bit. But he shook it off and stepped up for a repeat.
This time Watt stopped him, but Jack went on to a full day of practice that was all about honing the Steelers' running game and, most importantly, toughening their run defense.
Jack, the physical 6-1, 255-pounder brought in - after six seasons in Jacksonville - to embrace the position James Farrior once commandeered during the last Super Bowl era, has not only embraced the number worn by Farrior (51) but the position and what it means to the Steelers this season.
"Yes. Absolutely. That's the goal," said the 26-year-old Jack. "We definitely want to improve that area, as far as not having those holes, those gaps. Anytime I see those guards and centers double-team on the nose tackle, I know it's run and I'm coming down. I'm ready to get it."
Mike Tomlin may have juggled the order of the QB depth chart, but the order of the day was definitely physical football, as illustrated by the first snap of Seven Shots, when Harris took a handoff from Mitch Trubisky and scored by cutting back through center for the score.
But the defense held throughout the next five reps with four incompletions and a stop of Harris. Mason Rudolph shoveled a ball to TE Jace Sternberger for a wide score on the final rep as the group headed into the competition period.
On this day, that meant backs-on-backers, the drill set up for violent explosions and defensive wins. However, this year's event was rather tame. Perhaps the players were just getting used to their pads.
"You know how it goes," Jack said. "Day One, people are antsy. It is what it is, but trust me, those collisions will be there."
Jack was up first for the defense.
"Najee called me out in the beginning," he said. "He got the better of me in the first rep. I didn't like that. He called me out, so I guess I had to get a little warm-up in. But, nah, Derek, me and him got it on. It was pretty loud."
Did Jack hurt his back?
"No, no, no," he said. "I love collisions, man. That's really my thing. I'm typically a bull-rush guy. That was fun to just get back in the pads and get that collision going. I hate to put the little pads on. I wish we could just get that feeling all the time. But, no, that was a great collision. That was fun. That's what football is, man."
The rest was more of what we saw last year. Robert Spillane slipped and was blocked to the ground by Benny Snell; Anthony McFarland stopped Buddy Johnson; Harris stopped Devin Bush; rookies Mark Robinson, Mataeo Durant and Jaylen Warren were up and down; Bush beat Snell with finesse and was then blocked by Snell on the repeat; Spillane ran around Harris and on the repeat was blocked by Harris.
It was all tepid tea until Jack and Watt woke the crowd with a flashback to the Super Bowl era.
"Yes, sir," Jack said. "I like the head collision, man. I'm a head-butt guy. I love that."
In team scrimmages, Tomlin stressed the run game, and Alex Highsmith got the defense off to a good start by tackling Harris for a loss. Soon thereafter, Harris left the field after his left foot had been stepped on. He didn't return.
Rookie QB Kenny Pickett, running the second team, stopped the run-game saga with a play-action pass to Miles Boykin that no doubt boosted Pickett's confidence. Tomlin returned to the run game and rookie speedster Calvin Austin showed that he's no Dri Archer with a 10-yard jet sweep. Undrafted rookie Warren followed by lowering his shoulder for a violent pop on an unidentified linebacker in plowing for eight yards.
Rudolph took charge of the third team and Durant highlighted the series by bursting into the second level before being stopped by safety Tre Norwood, who enjoyed a strong day. Rookie ILB Robinson ended the period with two big hits, one that upended Warren in the backfield and a second that fired up the defense as it ran off the field.
In other team scrimmage highlights:
* Jack read a screen to Snell and tackled him for a loss;
* Pickett surprised the defense with a third-and-9 screen to Watt for a first down;
* LB Delontae Scott and DT Doug Costin batted passes back at Rudolph;
* Trubisky rolled left and threw across his body to Anthony Miller for 10 yards;
* Norwood sacked Pickett and then rocked Gunner Olszewski on a reception over the middle;
* Durant had perhaps the longest run of the day;
* Warren circled out of the backfield to catch a sublime pass from Rudolph in stride for a big gain down the sideline;
* Tyler Vaughns caught a play-action pass from Rudolph over the middle for 15 yards;
* McFarland burst around left end for a 10-yard TD run in the red zone period;
* Cody White caught a 10-yard TD pass from Trubisky rolling left;
* Austin ripped off a 10-yard jet run left for a touchdown and again showed that the little sprinter can get physical;
* Rudolph ended the day by rolling right and throwing a 10-yard TD pass to Steven Sims.
Again, we go to the run-stuffing Jack for a wrap on the first day in pads:
"I wanted more," he said. "You definitely look for those big-splash collisions, A-gap, head-on collisions, but that'll come. I'm looking forward to it."
Did any of the young running backs impress him?
"I like the way No. 30 runs," he said of Warren. "And 40 (Durant) has speed. Benny is Benny; he's always going to be a physical, toting runner. And then Najee. Najee's that star running back. He's a superstar in this league. It's always good when you get good on good and get to play against a guy like that, because there aren't too many backs in the league as talented as him."
Was Jack impressed by any of the youngsters on his side of the ball?
"Oh, yeah, Mark (Robinson) was flying around. That's my rook. I love Mark. He's just hungry and all he wants to do is hit. He just wants to run and hit and that's all we talk about. It was good to see him showcase his skills and do his thing."
The bottom line Monday had to be run defense. Is improvement coming?
"Yes. Absolutely," Jack said. "That's the goal."
NOTES -- Tomlin said Harris' left foot "shouldn't be a major deal." To that end, Harris was allowed to walk up the hill barefoot. ... Recently signed veteran RB Jeremy McNichols sat out the practice with a shoulder injury. ... Chase Claypool, Miles Killebrew, Diontae Johnson, Pat Freiermuth and Marcus Allen also missed practice. ... Tomlin's wrap on the team's physicality: "We’ve just got a lot of growth ahead of us, on both sides of the ball, in that space. When given an opportunity, we’re certainly going to focus on that component of play." ... On swapping the order of QBs, Tomlin said: "There will be more of that. All of those guys are running in all groups, it’s just part of team development." A reporter asked, "We shouldn't read into it?" To which Tomlin replied, "You should not, but I’m sure you will." ... And finally, Tomlin on Warren, the undrafted, 5-8, 215-pound rookie RB and cousin of former Steelers great Willie Parker: "He has an appetite for the competition. That’s a good thing. He’s learning and learning fast. I think the most significant thing that has captured my attention is that he seems really comfortable in these waters from a competition standpoint."
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