Chippiness kept to minimum during joint practice
During a 7-on-7 period late in Thursday’s joint practice at Acrisure Stadium, Pat Freiermuth reeled in a pretty one-handed catch while running full stride toward the back right corner of the end zone while Christian Benford was in tight pursuit.
During a 7-on-7 period late in Thursday’s joint practice at Acrisure Stadium, Pat Freiermuth reeled in a pretty one-handed catch while running full stride toward the back right corner of the end zone while Christian Benford was in tight pursuit.
After Freiermuth came down with the reception off a pass from Russell Wilson, he had strong words for Benford. The two entrenched each other’s personal spaces, and the palms of one of their hands might have faced up and outward in a token effort to shove the other.
That moment might have represented the highest point of animosity between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Buffalo Bills as the teams shared the field for what was the Steelers’ first practice with another team in eight years.
Players on both teams behaved themselves for the two-hour practice – no easy task, what with 181 rostered players shared one 120-by-53.3-yard field.
At one point during one of the first 11-on-11 periods after the traditional “Seven shots” two-point conversion simulation that opened team-drill practice, players from the Steelers offense and Bills defense gathered as if a skirmish was about to erupt – but, aside from some jawing, it blew over.
Later in a team period, some light pushing and shoving ensued. But it was nothing significant. Certainly far from the worst-case scenarios often playing out across the league when two teams practice together.