The Carolina Panthers (1-2) and Pittsburgh Steelers (1-2) play Thursday night at Heinz Field.
Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told his players the story of wide receiver Derek Moye earlier this week. Moye, an undrafted free agent in 2012, had been on the outside looking in going into the final preseason game last season. Moye caught two passes for 55 yards and just as impressive was his running down Panthers cornerback Josh Norman from behind after an interception. Moye played his way onto the 53-man roster, and Tomlin’s message to those who are in the same situation this year -- and that includes Moye -- was simple: Make it hard if not impossible for us to cut you.
Veteran defensive end Brett Keisel, who has been back with the Steelers for little more than a week, is expected to receive extensive playing time in a game that is generally reserved for younger players. Keisel could use work in preparation for the regular-season opener, and it will be interesting to see where the 13-year veteran gets his snaps. Keisel started at right defensive end from 2006-13 and Cameron Heyward, who will sit out as a precaution after spraining his ankle last Thursday, is listed at left defensive end on the depth chart. But Heyward started at right defensive end in the Steelers’ third preseason game, the day after they re-signed Keisel, and he has been entrenched there since the outset of offseason practices. We may find out more on how the Steelers plan on using Keisel this season based on where he lines up against the Panthers.
Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger won’t play against the Panthers. Backup Bruce Gradkowski will play sparingly if at all. That means it will be Landry Jones’ show, and if the second-year man bombs against the Panthers there may not be a place for him on the 53-man roster. The Steelers desperately want Jones, on whom they inexplicably used a fourth-round draft pick in 2013, to earn a spot on the team and not find his way onto it because they want to carry three quarterbacks. The former Oklahoma star did not play well in the Steelers’ second preseason game and he didn’t play at all last Thursday in a 31-21 loss at Philadelphia. It’s interesting that No. 4 quarterback Brendon Kay survived the first round of cuts Tuesday. Is the undrafted rookie competing with Jones or are the Steelers planning to play him Thursday so he can put out game tape after not seeing the field in the first three preseason games?
