PITTSBURGH (AP) — The same words kept popping up as James Conner Ryquell Armstead Jersey , Jaylen Samuels and Benny Snell Jr. talked. Words such as “we” and “us” and “relationships” and “my guys.”No personal agendas. No campaigning for more touches or playing time. No talk about contracts or specific roles. The Pittsburgh Steelers running backs just don’t see the point of personal pronouns.“We’re trying to be the best running back group in the world,” Samuels said.One that’s ready to escape Le’Veon Bell’s shadow for good.The versatile and dynamic three-time Pro Bowler’s long goodbye ended in March when he signed a four-year, $52 million deal with the New York Jets. For Conner and Samuels, that means no more keeping one eye on the playbook and another on the door to the locker room waiting for Bell to step through.He never did last fall, though that didn’t stop the seemingly endless debate over his intentions and his future, discussions the teammates he left behind tried to avoid even as they combined to put up numbers that rivaled Bell’s at the peak of his considerable powers.Conner and Samuels put up 1,925 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2018. Bell had 1,946 total yards and 11 touchdowns in 2017. Oh, and Conner and Samuels did it at a tenth of the price and an even smaller fraction of the drama.“We didn’t know what the situation with Le’Veon was going to be last year Gardner Minshew II Jersey ,” Samuels said. “We just had to come to work every day like he was going to show up. Now that he’s not here, we’re going to do the same thing. Just going to push even harder because we know the pressure is on us. We’ve got to get the job done.”One they’re focused on doing together.While Conner made the Pro Bowl after running for 973 yards and a dozen touchdowns and adding 497 yards receiving, he also missed time at various points because of minor injuries. Samuels — a rookie fifth-round pick last fall — filled in capably, including a memorable performance in a victory over the New England Patriots in which he racked up 172 total yards.Conner spent a portion of the winter bulking up in an effort to hold up better under the wear and tear of a 16-game season. His biceps and his shoulders look as if someone inserted a hose into them and just started puffing away, not stopping until his arms and neck appear to be bursting out from under his shoulder pads.“I don’t know what’s going on with him,” Samuels said with a laugh and a shake of his head.Conner is reluctant to discuss specifics about how much weight he’s added. He’s also reticent to declare himself the starter. Entering his third year as a pro, he’s become well-versed in how fast life can come at you in the NFL. He joined the Steelers as a third-round pick in 2017.Sixteen months later he found himself lining up behind quarterback Ben Roethlisberger when Bell opted to work on his music and his tan rather than sign his franchise tag and show up for work.Still, all those yards and all those touchdowns didn’t stop Pittsburgh from taking Snell in the fourth round of the draft following a record-breaking career at Kentucky. Conner didn’t take it personally. This is how things work.“Coach (Mike Tomlin) told us a while ago that he’s trying to replace us every year,” Conner said. “Didn’t mean that in a bad way. Doesn’t mean we’re not doing our job. It’s just you know Christian Wilkins Jersey , there’s always a young buck up and coming. You’ve seen the talent that Jaylen got. Seen the talent that Benny has. All those guys are talented, really good running backs.”Samuels excelled catching passes out of the backfield at North Carolina State — where he left as the school’s all-time leader in receptions — and spent the offseason refining his route running.The Steelers are looking for ways to have Conner and Samuels on the field at the same time, even if that means moving Samuels into more of an H-back role that would allow him the freedom to move around in search offavorable matchups.“We’ve both got unique skillsets,” Samuels said. “James can do a lot of running and I can do a lot of catching but we can also feed off each other. That was just Year One. Year Two we hope to build off that, exceed and make some noise.”They’re not the only ones. Snell left Kentucky with a year of eligibility left after breaking every important rushing record in school history. He didn’t panic when he didn’t hear his name called until the third day of the draft. He knows how well the Steelers develop mid-round picks. The rise of Conner and Samuels offers tangible proof.“Those are my guys, those are my brothers,” Snell said.A bond they will lean on as the post-Le’Veon Bell era begins, one more focused on sharing the burden rather than hogging the ball or the limelight.“It’s bigger than making plays on the field,” Conner said. “Like Michael Deiter Jersey , football is like a game of life. So the friendships and the relationships we have off the field, it helps us on the field. Everything is not just competition and who can make plays on the field. It’s important to be a good person, have good character.”
The Los Angeles Angels will try to keep charging closer to an American League wild-card spot when they host the Toronto Blue Jays in the third game of their four-game series Saturday night at Angel Stadium.
The Angels (41-35) won the first two games of the series and three straight overall to move within five games of the Seattle Mariners for the second wild-card spot in the AL. The Mariners have lost a season-high five straight games, allowing Los Angeles to make up 3 1/2 games since Tuesday.
“We still have a long ways to go,” Angels designated hitter Albert Pujols told Fox Sports West following a 2-1 victory against the Blue Jays on Friday night.
Pujols went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored in Friday’s win. He produced an RBI double in the first inning to give him 630 doubles for his career, moving him within two of David Ortiz for 10th on the all-time major-league list. He is four home runs shy of 630 for career, which would tie Ken Griffey Jr. for sixth on the career list.
Marcus Stroman (0-5, 7.71 ERA) is scheduled to take the mound for the Blue Jays (34-41) on Saturday night in his first start since May 8.
In his last outing, Stroman gave up five runs and nine hits over five innings in a 5-0 loss to the Mariners in Toronto. His counterpart Daniel Jones Jersey , Seattle left-hander James Paxton, became the first Canadian to throw a no-hitter in the game.
Stroman went on the disabled list a day later with fatigue in his throwing shoulder.
“It just got to the point where it was so mentally and physically frustrating,” Stroman told MLB.com at the time. “I just need to take a step back for a second, put it all together and come back and be myself out there.”
Pujols and Angels center fielder Mike Trout are each 5-for-10 in their careers against Stroman.
Stroman is 1-1 with a 5.14 ERA in four career appearances against Los Angeles, including three starts. The 5-foot-8 right-hander threw a complete game the last time he faced the Angels, allowing two runs (one earned) and seven hits in a 6-2 win at Angel Stadium on April 23, 2017, the start of a six-game winning streak for Stroman.
He finished with a career-high 13 wins last season, but hasn’t earned a victory since Sept. 24 against the New York Yankees.
Angels rookie right-hander Jaime Barria is scheduled to make his 10th career start and first against the Blue Jays.
Barria (5-3 Dexter Lawrence Jersey , 3.57) is tied for the AL lead in wins among rookies this season, and ranks third in ERA among rookies with at least 40 innings pitched.
The Angels have struggled to close out games this season, but the bullpen threw two perfect innings to complete the win on Friday, and their relievers have allowed two runs in 7 2/3 innings in the series.
“There’s no doubt, that as that back end of our bullpen grows, that’s going to really help our club,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia told reporters after the win on Friday. |
