Why wasn’t the Steelers OC Todd Haley playing Martavis Bryant before?
Todd Haley has not been the best offensive coordinator since his time spent in Pittsburgh, but over the last couple weeks one player is shining in his system. That player is Martavis Bryant, the fourth-round draft pick from Clemson, who was slowed by a shoulder injury late in the preseason that carried over into the season and set back his progress.
While Haley claims it was an injury that kept him out of the line-up, why did it take so long to activate him and play him?
“It was clear, and the injury added to it, that he wasn’t ready to go,” Haley said Thursday. “But I do think that once he got back in pads and he was working, and he wasn’t getting a helmet (on Sundays), it was clear to everybody that he was on his stuff and working. And when he got opportunities in practice, he was getting the job done the way it is expected to get done.”
In two games Bryant has seven catches for 123 yards and a 17.6 average, including a 52-yard catch – and another potential TD catch that he dropped. A total of 3 touchdowns in 2 weeks, the kid looks like the real deal, and he might be the person that saves his Offensive Coordinator’s job.
NFL Draft Diamonds was created to assist the underdogs playing the sport. We call them diamonds in the rough. My name is Damond Talbot, I have worked extremely hard to help hundreds of small school players over the past several years, and will continue my mission. We have several contributors on this site, and if they contribute their name and contact will be in the piece above. You can email me at nfldraftdiamonds@gmail.com