Don’t count Lorello out with Steelers
PITTSBURGH – One of the Steelers’ top talent evaluators warned two weeks ago that the team could keep six safeties. He mentioned it because undrafted rookie Mike Lorello was playing so well. And then Lorello played better. “Don’t count him out,” the source said.
But the numbers puzzle would seem to make Lorello an impossible fit onto the 53-man roster – not that Lorello has been checking the math.
“Coach (Bill) Cowher has been preaching the whole time not to count numbers because the approach to take, the one I’ve taken, is I can only control what I do,” said Lorello. “I just have to go out there and feel good about the progress that I’ve made and what I’ve been able to do and the rest will take care of itself.”
Lorello is a 5-foot-11, 208-pound strong safety out of West Virginia University. A native of Powell, Ohio, Lorello was a three-year starter, team captain, and first-team All-Big East at WVU, where his 31.5 tackles-for-loss rank fifth in school history.
Lorello started slowly with the Steelers, getting burned a few times in early practices, but he picked up the defense and began making plays in preseason games. Against Minnesota, Lorello sacked quarterback Tarvaris Jackson for a seven-yard loss early in the third quarter. In the same game, Lorello teamed with lineman Orien Harris to tackle running back Wendell Mathis for a two-yard loss.
In last week’s game against Philadelphia, Lorello put a hard hit on running back Ryan Moats for a three-yard loss. The next day he learned he’d passed the Steelers’ first cuts.
“The first day I came to minicamp in May, my head was spinning,” he said. “But we went through things twice in minicamp and once again in training camp and we’ve been running the same defense since I’ve been here, so I feel comfortable. I really know what I’m doing and I know what people around me are supposed to be doing, for the most part.”
About his three tackles-for-loss in the last two games, Lorello said: “Those were just plays I should’ve made.”
Has he received support from local fans who know him from his college days?
“Yeah. I saw a lot of people at camp who would just yell my name because they knew I played for West Virginia,” Lorello said. “It really goes hand in hand: If you’re a West Virginia fan, you’re more than likely a Steeler fan too.
“A lot of people are rooting for me back home and I’ve gotten a lot of compliments and congratulations, but everybody knows it’s not over yet, so we’ll see.”