The NFL's offseason training sessions, officially called "organized team activities" aka OTAs, are officially underway but that doesn't mean coaches have to use this time exclusively form football drills and film study.
Take Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin for instance, who has made it an annual tradition to treat his players to a day off to just have fun.
Yesterday, Tomlin used the free pass and told his players that instead of OTAs they'd be spending the day at Dave & Buster's.
Per Steelers.com,
“We acknowledge that camaraderie and togetherness is very much a part of team development,” said Tomlin. “Our closeness is going to get us out of tough situations. We know that. We show respect for that by taking a team activity day and doing something that fosters that togetherness and brotherhood.
“The guys will take it from here. They do a great job during the course of the season. Guys open their homes to teammates. The older guys teach the young guys to take care of their body. Things that good teams do. We like to show a respect for that through this process by utilizing one of our days to do something fun like this.”
“This is awesome,” said safety Sean Davis. “Like Coach said, we have team bonding, working on building chemistry. We are a new team this year. If we want to start that process early, this is great. Coming out here instead of practicing serves a purpose. You get off the field and do something like this. I am loving it.”
“We are out here trying to win in basketball, get as many tickets as possible,” added rookie QB Joshua Dobbs. “The competitiveness never stops. It’s all a part of it."
Check out some of the images from the Steelers' day off in the gallery above.