LATROBE, Pa. -- The final seconds are ticking down during the Pittsburgh Steelers' two-minute drill in training camp.
It's third-and-8, about 20 yards from the end zone.
Joshua Dobbs knows this isn't college anymore. The clock doesn't stop after converting a first down, forcing him to react quickly.
"As the receivers are running back, you change the whole mindset to, 'All right, we've got to take a shot at the end zone because this could be our last play,'" said Dobbs, a fourth-round pick in April's draft. "Or we need to throw one into the end zone and then get another play after that. It's just little situations like that that they put you in so on game day you know those situations and you're able to quickly react."
How'd it turn out? Dobbs, who is starting Friday night at MetLife Stadium against the New York Giants with Ben Roethlisberger and Landry Jones out, simply smiled when asked.
"We scored a touchdown to end it. That's always a good sign," Dobbs said about his rollout-right strike to a leaping Canaan Severin on the right side of the end zone, one of his better throws in camp.
Dobbs has missed several throws the past few weeks, which the team expected. Coaches also expected something else that they are absolutely getting: Dobbs using his mind to make good decisions and learn from miscues.
That will likely be Dobbs on Friday night: He'll make some mistakes, but he won't compound them. Dobbs missed three straight passes -- one in the dirt -- during Sunday's two-minute drill but improved his play Tuesday.
Much has been made of Dobbs' aerospace engineering degree from Tennessee. He isn't breaking down altitude coordinating systems in the huddle. But coaches have noticed he processes information quickly.
On game day, Dobbs will need to master the basics. Coach Mike Tomlin says he'll watch for Dobbs' game-day demeanor and communication.
"He's a bright-eyed, willing worker. He appears to learn from mistakes. That's good," Tomlin said. "He also appears to learn from the mistakes of others. That's doubly good. But like a lot of things, we won't know until we get him in the stadium. At that position, you're defined by how you perform in certain circumstances. It will be good to get him in that stadium on Friday and watch him in terms of putting his skills on display."
Dobbs is taking that process to heart for Friday. His intangibles were considered a strength coming out of the draft, and he wants to accentuate that.
"You're a communicator. You have to understand, you have to say it with confidence and speak clearly and loudly for your team to hear," Dobbs said Wednesday. "You have to own the position. You have to own the playbook."
