PITTSBURGH — Maurkice Pouncey turned to face the cameras, his elaborately tattooed chest already covered in a fine sheen of sweat.

These are what walkthroughs are like these days for the Pittsburgh Steelers center. Call it part of the maturation process for a player barely a month removed from his 25th birthday. Call it penance for a season lost to injury. Or maybe both.

Only when the game that’s come so easy to him was taken away did Pouncey truly come to appreciate his immense talent. That includes pushing himself during an exercise meant to play like a slow-motion dress rehearsal for the real thing.

Not for Pouncey, who is currently attacking each practice like a man trying to make up for lost time. A year removed from a gruesome knee injury that threatened his career, the three-time Pro Bowler is downright giddy heading into Sunday’s opener against Cleveland.

“I feel like a rookie all over again,” Pouncey said.

In a way, he is.

A new position coach, a new contract and a newly rebuilt right knee have Pouncey earnestly trying to regain the form that made him one of the best players at his position before teammate David DeCastro rolled up on him eight plays into the 2013 season opener against Tennessee.

One second Pouncey was pulling to his left to open a hole for Isaac Redman. The next he was staring up at the sky and screaming in agony, his knee shredded and his teammates in shock. While trainers tended to him, quarterback Ben Roethlisberger knelt on the Heinz Field turn a few yards away and covered his eyes in a mixture of shock and disgust.

Surgery and eight grueling months of rehab followed, a process that forced Pouncey to watch from the sideline or on TV while the Steelers slumped to an 0-4 start on their way to a second straight 8-8 season.

Relegated to bystander, Pouncey admits he wasn’t much of a cheerleader. It’s kind of hard to wave a towel when you’re gritting your teeth.

“That was terrible,” Pouncey said. “I can’t imagine what it was like for the guys who were playing, because when you lose games like that — four in a row — everything’s different at work. It’s tough to be there, and nobody has a smile on their face.”