Training Camp - DAY 1

TIOPS is reporting that Kendall Simmons, Max Starks and Willie Colon arrived at camp in great shape. Starks also excelled in the conditioning run yesterday, and all of this does not surprise me since that was the first thought that came to mind when I saw a picture of him arriving at camp (below). That's good to hear / see especially in light of the recent Casey Hampton drama! They probably realize that they'll be competing for their positions.

Speaking of Hampton and competing for postitions, when Ron Cook asked a few of the players to speak on what they thought regarding the Hampton PUP list situation, all of them basically felt the same way -- they realize Coach Tomlin was sending a message and they heard it loud and clear!

"Doing this to a player of Casey's stature sends a message to everyone else -- nobody is safe," defensive captain James Farrior said.

"It doesn't surprise me with Tomlin. It doesn't matter who you are with him. You have to perform," veteran wide receiver Hines Ward added.

"It's unfortunate he came in like this, but I'm not worried about him being ready for the season," Farrior said. "He always gets himself ready ... "We need him, I know that. He's our anchor."

Not to mention the fact that this isn't the first time that Hampton has showed up to camp less that ready to perform. Last year, the same situation occurred but being it was Tomlin's first training camp, he let it slide. This year, he isn't so quick to let it slide and takes the matter very seriously.

That's why Tomlin sees nothing funny about Hampton's weight problem. The guess here is it disappoints him to no end and also ticks him off because Hampton has let the team down, although he didn't say that. What he did say flatly when asked if he was concerned that Hampton wouldn't be ready for the season was this: "Yes, I am." [Ron Cook - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]

Said Hampton, "I know I need to be in better shape. I know what I have to do. Bottom line, come Sept. 7, I'll be ready to play."

Let's hope so!