Pittsburgh Steelers First Round Draft Pick Derrick Harmon (99) works an exercise during the Pittsburgh Recruue camp on Friday.
Pittsburgh (AP) – Derrick Harmon came to work on Friday, eager to start his career in the NFL while reconciling with the loss of his mother Tiffany healthy, who died shortly after the Pittsburgh steelers selected the defensive tackle of Oregon with the global 21st choice during the draft last month.
“I do my best for the moment, I do my best,” said Harmon on the first day of the Pittsburgh recruit. “I am in football. I’m in my element, so I got into mind, but I’m fine. ”
The 21 -year -old Harmon called for the moment when he entered the Steelers’ changing rooms “a dream come true”, aware that his mother – who has endured a series of health laids in recent years – is still with him in many ways.
Asked how he faced, Harmon haussed his shoulders.
“I don’t know, I’m still facing,” said Harmon. “I don’t know. I just put one foot in front of the other, really.
The annual camp provides recruits, first -year players and veterans who received an invitation to a trial with three days of presentation, relatively informal training sessions and links. For Harmon, he also provides a brief return to normality at a time when he does not feel normal.
The native of the Detroit region, 21, has already sent a text to the defensive captain of the longtime steelers, Cam Heyward and connected in person with his colleague of defensive line Keeanu Benton, who occupies the next locker.
“We have been talking since we are here, (he) was sitting next to me and all,” said Harmon. “He is therefore a good teammate to have. He came from Big Ten, just like me, so we know how the ball is. ”
Pittsburgh hopes that the 6 -foot Harmon 4 inch and 324 pounds can be the next link of a chain of large lines from the defensive line which extends from Heyward to Casey Hampton and so on, to the big steel curtains of the 1970s.
Harmon understands the wait that comes when the Steelers take you to the first round, in particular in a position so closely associated with some of the best defenses in the history of the NFL. He does not try to get too much pressure on himself and focuses rather on the absorption of the most information than possible, as quickly as possible.
“(I) I just want to help my team to go out, guy, just to work with my team, be a good recruit and find this veterinarian to pass under his wing and learn this game because it is a completely different game of the university,” said Harmon.
Well, maybe not that different. Harmon spent his first three years in Michigan State before transferring to Oregon, where he turned into a second All-American team.
“I come from Oregon,” he said. “And they throw everything (there).
Harmon is the size to help fill the racing lanes, but also athletics to get to the quarter-back, a bit like Heyward, the last defensive line taken by the Steelers in the first round.
14 years after being selected, Heyward is still among the best in the league in its position while organizing a curriculum vitae which will receive consideration in the temple of fame. Harmon has a long way to go to reach this standard. He has a lot of time, however, and a work ethics attributes to his mother, who found ways to provide for his family in the midst of persistent health problems.
Harmon also expressed all the concerns about the potential shoulder problems that arose before the project, saying that it was “100% healthy”. He also adopted the idea that he has “Steelers DNA”, as managing director Omar Khan and coach Mike Tomlin described Harmon and the rest of the Pittsburgh’s incoming recovery class.
“You must have a grain to be in this organization,” he said. “You must have a little advantage for you and you have to play with a little pride for you, and I have the impression that it is me.”
