Linemen expect tough fights for jobs
Twice-injured Hawkins wants to break through
The Steelers have developed undrafted offensive linemen better than most NFL teams. Four of the nine offensive linemen they kept on the 53-man roster last season did not hear their name called during the draft. Starting left tackle Alejandro Villanueva and left guard Ramon Foster were two of them, along with reserves B.J. Finney and Matt Feiler.
Feiler ended up starting 10 games because of injuries to Marcus Gilbert, and he’ll be looking to join Villanueva and Foster as full-time starters next season. He played well in his extended audition, but head coach Mike Tomlin said there will be an open competition for the job during training camp.
Undrafted free agents are constantly fighting to hold off drafted players, and Feiler’s task this summer will be to beat out Chukwuma Okorafor, a third-round pick last year, and Jerald Hawkins, a fourth-round pick in 2016.
“It’s going to be whoever has the better play,” Feiler said. “It’s up for grabs. It will be a tough battle.”
Feiler has played the majority of the reps with the starters in OTAs this spring. Okorafor and Hawkins have split reps as the backup left and right tackles.
This is an important training camp for Hawkins, who has been on injured reserve for two of his first three seasons. Midway through his rookie training camp, Hawkins injured his shoulder in a joint practice with the Lions and was placed on injured reserve. Last spring during OTAs he had a season-ending quadriceps injury.
“Injuries are a devastating thing, man,” Hawkins said. “It takes a toll not only on your body but mentally, too.”
The quad injury was much tougher to overcome than the shoulder injury, Hawkins said. Doctors remain mystified as to how it occurred, and the rehabilitation was long and grueling. He returned in less than a year, but he had to shave a few months off the scheduled rehab to make it back in time for the start of OTAs.
“It was my first leg injury,” Hawkins said. “It’s an injury that rarely happens. They didn’t even know how it happened. It was a freak accident. That put a big strain on me mentally and physically.”
The only season Hawkins played was 2017. He dressed for five games as a reserve and played 47 snaps, mostly as a blocking tight end. He said being in the building with his teammates during both of his IR seasons helped him gain knowledge of the offense, but he knows he has to stay healthy this summer if he has any chance of making the 53-man roster in the final year of his rookie contract.
“Honestly, I look at this year like every year,” Hawkins said. “I come in strong-minded, ready to compete. I just want to get better with the whole room. As long as we get better and don’t stay the same. We have a standard here. We have to meet that or exceed it.”
Despite earning strong reviews during his stint as a starter last season, Feiler said he does not view himself as a full-time tackle. There was a time when the Steelers believed Feiler might be a better guard than a tackle. He might have changed their minds last fall, but he’s not taking anything for granted.
“I have to keep working for it,” Feiler said. “We’ll see what this camp has to offer.”
The wild card in the competition is Okorafor. He is the most naturally gifted of the trio. He started one game when Feiler was injured. At 6 feet 6 inches and 320 pounds, Okorafor might someday become a candidate to start at left tackle because of his athleticism.
The Steelers kept five tackles on the roster last season. Zach Banner was signed midway through training camp and made the 53-man roster. They could do the same this year, but Hawkins is aware that this might be his last chance.
“I just have to stay healthy,” Hawkins said. “They kept me around last year. I don’t take that for granted. I just have to keep proving them right.
“It comes down to if you can handle your business and if you can contribute to the team.”