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Is it necessary evil, or just plain unncessary?
Steelers: Veterans’ playing time raises questions.
Ben Roethlisberger will play in his only preseason game Saturday. But is it necessary?
How will a few series in a preseason game Aug. 25 help a quarterback be ready for the Sept. 9 start of his 15th season? Will he be more prepared for that opener in Cleveland by playing briefly against the Tennessee Titans at Heinz Field?
Is the risk of injury — which is why Roethlisberger won’t have played in the other three preseason games or for very long Saturday — worth it?
“I probably don’t need to, but I’d like to get in there a little bit,’’ Roethlisberger said. “I think it helps knock the rust off a little bit. The speed is different from practice to a preseason game; even regularseason games, the speed is different.”
Roethlisberger won’t be the only old vet making his lone preseason appearance Saturday. Center Maurkice Pouncey and cornerback Joe Haden are among the others who were deemed by coach Mike Tomlin either too important to put at risk or players who just did not need exhibition work other than cameos against the Titans.
“I just think it’s good just to get a couple snaps in, get the feel of a live game,’’ Pouncey said. “You can’t really relate it to practice all the time and the guys flying around and tackling and the play-calling that goes on [in a game]. So, it is good to go out there and get a fresh start.”
Pouncey has played center for a long time, starting there as a rookie in 2010. He knows how to do it, and a few series Saturday won’t change that. Neither is he gun-shy after missing the entire 2015 season because of an ankle injury in the third game of that preseason against Green Bay. He was only going to play a few series then, too.
“I think it’s more me, mentally,’’ Pouncey said of his desire to play a bit Saturday. “Maybe some guys don’t need it at all, but I just like going out there and getting the feel of the game, making sure I’m able to still do it, you know?”
Even Roethlisberger would prefer not to see Pouncey play — to a degree.
“I don’t want him to play, either, but, if I’m in there, I want him to play,’’ he said, with a laugh. “Is it necessary? Probably not, but it’s nice to get a couple series, I think.”
Injuries, of course, can happen anytime, even in non-contact situations; tackle Jerald Hawkins’ season abruptly ended in the spring when his quad muscle tore.
But why risk players such as Roethlisberger, Pouncey or wide receiver Antonio Brown in games like Saturday when there may still be some young Titans trying to make the team or the starting lineup, where one quarterback sack or big hit could do the job?
The way coaches approach the fourgame preseason has evolved, and some still treat it differently. Tom Brady, for example, played 39 snaps (51 percent of the offense) in New England’s second preseason game against Philadelphia.
Coaches followed a near-universal format years ago, similar to what Steelers radio analyst Tunch Ilkin remembers while playing for Chuck Noll.
The first units would play a quarter in the first game, two quarters in the second game, sometimes into the second half in the third game and three full quarters of the fourth game. That last game was considered a dress rehearsal for the start of the regular season.
Today, it’s something to avoid almost altogether, as few starters even play in the preseason finale.
“I loved that,’’ Ilkin said of playing nearly all of the fourth preseason game, “because I wanted to know that I could go 60 minutes, because the first regular-season game was always hot, a 1 o’clock starting time, and you wanted to be in shape and you wanted to have your craft honed in and you wanted to be sharp with your technique.”
That was before the really big money arrived along with free agency and the salary cap, which cut into teams’ depth. It also came before the elimination of twicedaily practices in training camps that also were lengthier by a week or so.
Coaches had time to analyze the younger and newer players in practices. Now, they don’t.
Veteran tackle Marcus Gilbert missed eight games last season and wants the real-game feel this summer. Yet, rookie Chuks Okorafor needs even more time as he takes over for Hawkins as the top backup tackle.
“The more repetitions, the better I’ll be,’’ Gilbert said. “But, then again, I also have to realize these young guys need these reps, too, because you’re only one play away from getting in the game.”
Or, as happened to Pouncey three preseasons ago, one play from leaving it. Ed Bouchette: ebouchette@post-gazette. com and Twitter @EdBouchette.