Nothing super, but new Steelers make impression

PITTSBURGH (AP) — An NFL preseason game is mostly for the rookies and the retreads, players who haven’t been heard from since college and some whose colleges, as well as their players, are barely known themselves.

Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin calls it “August football.”

September? That’s the time for Ben Roethlisberger, Jeff Reed and Ryan Clark, players who will make only a few cameo appearances when the games mean nothing but will be counted on to win big games — and, yes, perhaps the Super Bowl — during the season.

That’s why Tomlin made little of a 20-10 exhibition victory over the Arizona Cardinals on Thursday night that resembled the Super Bowl only because the Steelers and Cardinals were on the same field again. The players and the atmosphere, the intensity and the tempo, weren’t nearly the same.

“We have a lot of work in front of us,” Tomlin said.

To Tomlin, it’s not always what a coach sees in August that helps him build a roster and decide who he can count on in October and November. It’s also what he doesn’t see.

Tomlin saw Roethlisberger make some crisp throws while looking relatively sharp in brief playing time. He didn’t see any turnovers or indecision from his starters.

He saw Charlie Batch complete a long pass to Limas Sweed. He didn’t see Batch get hurt and be finished for the season like he did in last year’s preseason opener.

What Tomlin doesn’t know is whether Isaac Redman’s two touchdown runs signaled that he’s a player to watch for the rest of camp, or whether he merely took advantage of going against third- and fourth-stringers.

If the Steelers’ depth chart is accurate, Redman is seventh and last among their running backs.

“Hopefully we will get some more looks at him against some varsity guys,” Tomlin said. “He did a nice job with what he faced. We are not going to make too much of it. We will continue to work and move forward.”

Redman wasn’t running against Cardinals regulars Darnell Dockett, Clark Haggans or Karlos Dansby, but rather the guys who back up the backups. No matter, Redman understands that all a player in his role can do is take advantage of every carry.

“When you are an undrafted free agent, you’ve got to do whatever they tell you to do and you’ve got to impress somebody,” said Redman. “I know if I didn’t impress anybody, there was a good chance I wouldn’t even make it to the first game. ”

He’s already done that twice in a week. He gained the starters’ attention by scoring twice during goal-line drills on Sunday and by serving as the lead blocker on a third TD run.

“I just wanted to make the most out of every opportunity I had, whether it was running the ball or going down on kickoffs and punts,” said Redman, who scored the game’s first two touchdowns on runs of 3 and 5 yards during the fourth quarter. “They put me in on goal line and I tried my best to get in.”