Steelers inside the ropes: Jonnu Smith, Juan Thornhill fight twice to highlight chippy practice

The pads were kept in storage Thursday, but the chippy nature of training camp remained constant for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Tight end Jonnu Smith and safety Juan Thornhill mixed it up on back-to-back reps of a coverage drill early in a practice session that was moved up to the morning because of expected inclement weather in the afternoon.

Then, top receiver DK Metcalf and safety Chuck Clark got physical following a rep in a team period.

Sandwiched between the first padded practice and the Friday night session at Latrobe Memorial Stadium, the Steelers did not wear pads for the two-and-a-half-hour workout at Chuck Noll Field. Still, the downgrade in attire didn’t keep emotions in check.

“This is a football team we’re putting together,” coach Mike Tomlin said, “but it’s also an opportunity to learn how to compete and compete the right way and be professional.”

Tempers spilled over during an individual session that came on the heels of “seven shots,” which traditionally opens the team portion of practice. Tight ends and receivers were paired against cornerbacks and safeties.

With Mason Rudolph at quarterback, Smith ran a deep route and made a leaping catch over Thornhill. After coming down with the ball, Smith threw it at the safety’s feet, and Thornhill took offense. They had to be separated by teammates.

The histrionics continued on the rematch, again with Rudolph at quarterback. Smith and Thornhill engaged in some pushing at the line of scrimmage before the tight end broke into the open. He couldn’t catch up to the pass, which fell incomplete. As Smith walked back to the huddle, Thornhill retrieved the ball, ran up to Smith and stuck the ball in the tight end’s stomach. Smith kept his cool until both players returned to the huddles, and the pushing and shoving resumed.

Thornhill did not speak to reporters after practice, and Smith chalked it up to the competitive nature of practice.

“He didn’t like me throwing … listen, we’re teammates, we have no personal beef or anything like that,” Smith said. “We’re out here competing, having fun. It gets competitive when you lose and when you win. We’ve been doing this a long time. We want to win. It brings out certain characteristics in us.

“We can’t take this to Sunday, so we can let it out here in training camp.”

Clark also downplayed his brief incident with Metcalf.

“You put Type A personalities in a space and say, ‘Go be competitive, go be physical,’ stuff is going to happen,” he said.

• The defense scored a 4-3 victory in “seven shots.” Each quarterback had a completion in the 2-point conversion simulation.

Darius Slay broke up two attempts by Aaron Rodgers with the first-teamers on the field, one to Metcalf and one to Roman Wilson. In between, Rodgers and Metcalf connected for a score with the receiver pulling in a low pass in the end zone.

Rudolph was 1 for 2 on pass attempts to veteran Robert Woods. On the first route, Woods got leverage on Slay. On the second, the pass was high and skipped off Woods’ hands with Thornhill in coverage.

Rookie Will Howard got the final two snaps and also was 1 for 2. He found Brandon Johnson for a score that gave the offense a 3-3 tie. On the decisive snap, Howard’s pass to the left corner was too high for tight end JJ Galbreath.

• The highlight of the one-on-one matchups — aside from the two fights — was Wilson making a leaping catch in the end zone to take the ball away from cornerback Joey Porter Jr. Wilson held onto Rudolph’s pass after hitting the ground, then celebrated the big play with Calvin Austin III.

Tight end Darnell Washington got past linebacker Cole Holcomb for a long gain. On the other side of the field, Rodgers overthrew Johnson on a deep route, and Austin got turned around by Jalen Ramsey’s coverage. Rodgers and Smith also had miscommunication with Smith running a post route and Rodgers throwing his pass toward the empty sideline. Rodgers also overthrew Ke’Shawn Williams.

• In the second team period, Smith lined up in the backfield, took a pitch and broke upfield for a nice run. Rodgers hit Metcalf on a crossing route for about a 20-yard gain. Batting down a pass was defensive linemen Logan Lee. Howard, again taking third-team reps instead of Skylar Thompson, had completions to Max Hurleman and Williams.

• With the Steelers practicing third downs, Miles Killebrew had an interception after a pass intended for Woods was broken up by James Pierre. Yahya Black swatted down a Howard pass, but the rookie quarterback bounced back by finding Roc Taylor down the left side.

• The two special teams periods were devoted to the kickoff alignment.

• With Broderick Jones being limited to individual work, Dylan Cook took the first-team reps at left tackle.