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PITTSBURGH -- Coach Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers liked what he saw from the newest players on the team during the three-day rookie minicamp. Tomlin and his staff got an up-close look at their draft picks -- outside linebacker T.J. Watt, receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, cornerback Cameron Sutton, running back James Conner, quarterback Josh Dobbs, cornerback Brian Allen, long snapper Colin Holba and outside linebacker Keion Adams.
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"It was a great weekend," Tomlin said. "It was an opportunity to get to know some of the guys that we are working with, an opportunity to get to evaluate some tryout guys.
"I'm excited to have them. I loved the general enthusiasm and attitude of the group collectively. Needless to say, this is just the beginning. It looks that way, but a very productive weekend."
In addition to the eight draft picks, the Steelers had nine undrafted free agents, a small group of first-year players who spent time on the practice squad last season and about 30 players in for tryouts.
The players who spent the weekend on a tryout are extreme longshots to make it in the NFL, but the Steelers have discovered a few players in such a setting over the years, including Terence Garvin, who developed into a strong special teams player for Pittsburgh from 2013-15 and now plays for the Seahawks.
"I have stated it, but whether or not they believe me is up to them," Tomlin said. "Oftentimes, whether or not they believe me, has a direct impact on how they perform. I am wishing them the best. It is a legitimate opportunity, but they have to believe it."
For two of the rookie picks there is at least some familiarity in their new setting.
The Steelers drafted Sutton out of Tennessee in the third round and then selected Tennessee quarterback Josh Dobbs in the fourth round. They were roommates as well as teammates in college.
"It's good to get out on the field and compete," Dobbs said. "Of course, it's good to have a familiar face across the ball with Cam out here."
The Steelers begin the next phase of their offseason program on May 23, when the first 12 offseason training activities commence. That will be followed by minicamp in the middle of June.
Tomlin said he is expecting most of his rookies to participate in OTAs, unless they have previously arranged promotional obligations with the league.
--Third-round pick James Conner didn't have to go very far to attend his first NFL rookie minicamp. All he did was walk next door to the practice facility Pitt shares with the Steelers.
Conner, a running back, was selected to add depth behind Le'Veon Bell.
"It's just a different practice field," Conner said. "That's really the only thing. I'm very blessed and fortunate to be here, because I am comfortable here, at this facility. It's just different grass that I am on."
For Conner, who played high school ball in nearby Erie, Pa., and then at Pitt, getting drafted by the Steelers is a dream come true.
"Thought about it all the time, every day," Conner said. "Watching Antonio (Brown), Le'Veon and Ben (Roethlisberger) work, I would have loved to have joined that offense. And I did that. I am happy."
--Second-round pick JuJu Smith-Schuster was the youngest player drafted. He doesn't turn 21 until November. He said his age was never an issue in college at USC and he doesn't plan on it being an issue in the NFL.
"It never did," Smith-Schuster said. "I see it as age is just a number. But at the end of the day, the person out there is just playing. They're not going to base (opinions) of a player based off his age.
"You can be the oldest guy on the field and still play. Shout out to James Harrison for doing it 15, 16 years. That's a great example."
Being an 18-year old freshman in the Pac-12 did force Smith-Schuster to grow up quickly. He said he uses those experiences to his advantage and hopes there is translation into the professional ranks.
"The only difference being the youngest guy on the field is that I had to mature earlier," he said. "I didn't have time to be a kid in college. I got thrown right in the fire and started right away. The train is moving with or without you."
--There was a time when the Steelers did not even consider starting rookie defenders.
In fact, during the first six years of Mike Tomlin's tenure as head coach, the Steelers drafted 22 defensive players, including three first-round picks, and none of them ever started as rookies.
That has changed in the last four years, as eight rookie defenders have started games.
Outside linebacker T.J. Watt and Cameron Sutton could be next in line to earn starting jobs as rookies.
Sutton, a cornerback selected in the third round, has the best chance. The Steelers need a starting slot corner and Sutton could get a shot to play early because of his ability to play man coverage.
Watt's path to a starting job isn't as clear because James Harrison is the incumbent in front of him on the depth chart. But Harrison is 39, and at the very least, the Steelers will be counting on Watt to spell him in pass rushing situations.
