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Villanueva has a lot to prove

By Ray Fittipaldo 8 years ago

Welcome to Day 2 of Steelers training camp. One more unpadded practice in helmets and shorts before the real evaluating begins. Head coach Mike Tomlin is not big on evaluating football players in shorts, and for that reason, Wednesday starts the process for several of the younger players who hope to make the team this summer.

I wrote about one of those players today. Alejandro Villanueva is going to have plenty of opportunities over the next month to show the coaches what he can do. With top reserve Mike Adams rehabbing a back injury for four weeks it’s Villanueva who will get the first opportunity for extended playing time in his place.

This is an important summer for Villanueva, who spent last season on the practice squad. He has never played in an NFL game and turns 27 in September. The Steelers like what they have seen from him over the past year he’s been in their program, but teams don’t usually spend a lot of time on players in their mid- to late-20s unless they prove they are capable of contributing.

For that reason, the next four weeks are the most important ones of Villanueva’s professional football career.

This is his first camp with the Steelers. He joined the practice squad after the final cuts were made last year after playing for the Eagles during the preseason. To this point there has been little opportunity for him to truly show the coaches what he can do on a consistent basis.

Under the 2011 collective bargaining agreement NFL teams are allowed only 14 padded practices during the regular season. That’s it. Villanueva will get that and thensome this summer.

Don’t be surprised if Villanueva is a camp darling. Last fall, during those infrequent padded practices, the coaches would have the second-stringers compete in blocking drills at the end of practice after the starters had taken their competitive reps. Villanueva more than held his own and in one memorable practice dominated second-round pick Stephon Tuitt, who a short time later would become a starter.

Villanueva is looking forward to his first opportunity compete as an offensive lineman in a game. That will come against the Vikings Aug. 9 in the Hall of Fame Game.

“Once you put on pads and it’s a game environment then I can evaluate where I am in my game and see what I have to focus on,” he said. “And make a case for the roster.”

Here are some additional quotes from Villanueva that did not make it into my story this morning:

On Adams being out: “I don’t think it matters. I’m not competing against one guy. I’m competing against everyone else in the league right now. Whether they drafted a guy in the first round or didn’t draft a guy at all I thought it was up to me to make the team and contribute. For me, I just have to work really hard on my skills and not worry about who’s available, who’s healthy and who’s not.”

On his leading the linemen in the conditioning run: “I was fortunate to train in Spain, where family is [earlier this summer] where it’s pretty hot as well. Distance is never a problem for me. When you’re in the army you have to run a lot longer than football. The favorite run in the army is the five-mile run.”

On carrying close to 340 pounds: “I feel good with the weight. For me, it’s the explosiveness and short distance. I feel good with my physical conditioning. The mental aspect will be more important.”