Steelers notes: Teryl Austin foresees increased role for Yahya Black

By most measures for a rookie fifth-round pick, Yahya Black had a fruitful and productive NFL debut.

Black ranked fourth among Pittsburgh Steelers defensive linemen in defensive snaps played with 24, registering two assisted tackles and (according to Pro Football Focus) two quarterback hurries during a 34-32 win at the New York Jets this past Sunday.

A training-camp darling who had two sacks during the preseason finale, Black is line for even more playing time going forward — perhaps as soon as this coming Sunday’s home opener against the Seattle Seahawks.

“We’ve seen really good progress from him,” defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said Thursday, “and I think as the season goes by, he’ll continue to get better and grow.

“We’ll find a place for him because he can do a nice job in there, and just like a lot of young guys, you don’t want to overload him early and have him fail. You want to get him to have some success and then grow him from there.”

Black played at some point at virtually every spot up and down the defensive line, and his nine snaps as a “four technique” (across from an offensive tackle) were second most on the team.

A knock for his performance playing for a team that allowed 182 rushing yards? PFF docked Black for two missed tackles.

Not pinning the blame

Only two teams allowed more sacks in Week 1 than the Steelers. PFF attributed three of the four sacks to left tackle Broderick Jones.

Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, though, wasn’t willing to say that.

“When you’ve got a real team, you’re not looking just to blame one guy all the time,” Smith said Thursday. “If you struggle with something, it’s our job — both the player and us — to problem-solve and fix it, and that’s the name of the game.”

Three other starters on the Steelers’ offensive line were entering their second NFL seasons. The three of them combined for a total of 30 career starts headed into Sunday.

“Those guys are young,” Smith said, including Jones in that group. “They’ve got to improve. They know that. But we know that as coaches, so that’s really what the focus is this week.”

Breaking them in

It was a rule change that flew under the radar over the offseason but could have significant ramifications.

After years in which special-teams specific “K” balls (for kicking) were off-limits to teams until one was needed to put into play, this season the league is allowing kickers, punters and others to “work in” the balls. Many believe this will lead to farther and more accurate field-goal kicks.

Each team is delivered 60 balls to start a season to “break in” (think of a baseball glove) how they choose — under certain restrictions. Balls are checked and verified by officials before each game.

As one of the league’s most tenured special teams coordinators, the Steelers’ Danny Smith has a listened-to voice any time a rule change is considered that affects special teams. Smith on Thursday explained the rationale for the change in policy.

“People had questions about the chip in the ball,” Smith said, referencing a tiny device that collects data used for advanced statistics. “And (about) some of those chips not being as sturdy, some of those chips moving. Some people copped out and said that was a reason for missed kicks. I’m not sure the validity of that. I didn’t study it; I don’t really care about it because it didn’t happen to us.

“But that was the origination of it. Some of the balls that were presented (on a given game day), we couldn’t do anything about. Now you can.”