Inside the ropes: Dwayne Haskins, Joshua Dobbs put to test in 2-minute offense

If all things are equal when a roster spot is at stake, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin likes to see how his players react in pressure situations as a determining factor.

Tomlin put quarterbacks Dwayne Haskins and Joshua Dobbs to the test at the end of practice Sunday.

Each quarterback ran the two-minute drill under identical circumstances. Each had 1 minute, 46 seconds on the clock with one timeout, the ball at the Steelers 33 and a touchdown needed before time expired.

Haskins’ drive stalled at the five, with the former first-round pick throwing an incomplete pass in the end zone on fourth down as time expired. Dobbs also moved the ball to the five, only he threw a touchdown pass to Anthony Johnson with 23 seconds remaining.

“No doubt,” Tomlin said when asked of the drill’s importance. “It’s management of circumstances and the leadership of guys within circumstances. It’s a big component of play.”

The two-minute drill frequently is used to close practice, and that’s by design.

“Time is somewhat condensed,” Tomlin said. “We make sure we’re checking all of the boxes as it pertains to situational ball. If we err, we want to make sure we err on too much exposure rather than not enough.”

A look at the plays each quarterback made (or didn’t make):

• Haskins: 15-yard completion to Isaiah McKoy, 7-yard completion to Johnson, second-down pass batted down incomplete, 5-yard completion to McKoy on third-and-3 to the 40, 25-yard completion to Rico Bussey, 10-yard completion to Pat Freiermuth to the 5 with 18 seconds left. Timeout used.

From the 5, Haskins threw out of the back of the end zone looking for Matthew Sexton in double coverage. Second down, Haskins threw it away while facing pressure from Melvin Ingram. Third down, pass out of end zone. Fourth down, 0:03 left, Haskins ducks pressure, then throws low and incomplete in the end zone, the ball skipping into Sexton’s arms.

• Dobbs: Unlike Haskins, who primarily worked underneath in the middle of the field, Dobbs opened by targeting routes near the sideline. 16-yard pass to Tyler Simmons that stopped the clock, 5-yard pass to Sexton that did the same. Incomplete pass. Third-and-2, pass underneath to Simmons for 8. Screen to Jaylen Samuels who is downed at the 30. 5-yard pass to Johnson, who is touched at the 25. Completion to Johnson, who runs out of bounds at 5 with 0:28 left.

First down, Dobbs finds Johnson just across the goal line for 5-yard touchdown and 0:23 left.

Seven shots

Offense scores 4-3 victory, with three scores coming on each of Ben Roethlisberger’s snaps.

Roethlisberger found Diontae Johnson with a play-action pass, JuJu Smith-Schuster on a crossing route and Smith-Schuster again at the pylon. On the third snap, though, Roethlisberger faced pressure from Ingram that likely would have been a sack.

Mason Rudolph went 1 for 2 on his snaps. He found Johnson for a score on his first attempt, then threw incomplete on his second.

Haskins bobbled his first snap, then hurriedly tried to get off a throw that was batted down. His second attempt was a fade to the right corner that was overthrown.

Individual drills

The Steelers had tight ends and running backs matched up against linebackers and safeties in single coverage. Defensive tackle Cameron Heyward jumped in for a play and tried to cover tight end Zach Gentry.

“Cam’s losing a heck of a lot more than he’s winning, but he’s got a competitive spirit, doesn’t he?” Tomlin said later.

Gentry used his 6-8 frame to catch a pass over Miles Killebrew during one rep. Kevin Rader reached over Rob Spillane for another completion.

Devin Bush did not participate in the drill.