With injuries once again being a major concern, the Steelers started practicing for their game against the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday. The report is only an estimate because the team conducted a walkthrough.
The Steelers’ chances of making the playoffs are at stake in this week’s game, hence staying healthy is crucial.
Elandon Roberts, a linebacker, was already out for the week before practice started a week ago due to a pectoral injury; however, things are looking up for him this week, even though he was reported to have not practiced on Tuesday.
“Elandon Roberts, we’ll play day-by-day and see where it leads us in terms of his availability,” Mike Tomlin, the coach, said.
And in that situation, he’s not the only one.
Security Both Trenton Thompson (neck) and Minkah Fitzpatrick (knee), who were out for Sunday’s game against the Seahawks, are also considering their day-to-day status. Fitzpatrick’s status of not practicing was noted.
“Same with Minkah and Trenton Thompson, don’t really know where we are right now,” stated Tomlin. I would be conjecturing.
“We’ll begin by having only a partial response from each of the three, assess the level of engagement, and observe if it improves or declines in light of our daily observations.
We will continue to work through the week as usual.”
After returning to play following his injury against the Seahawks, linebacker T.J. Watt was not available for comment when Tomlin spoke. Watt is a strong candidate for defensive player of the year.
Tomlin stated, “T.J. got hurt late in the game.” Monday, hadn’t seen him yet. Don’t expect anything to go wrong with it. Although it would cause issues early in the week, I don’t think it would be detrimental to his participation.”
Watt stated he will be ready on Saturday after practice.
Kenny Pickett (ankle) could be available as quarterback, but Mason Rudolph is the starting quarterback since he guided them to back-to-back victories, according to Coach Mike Tomlin.
“I believe there are less doubts about Kenny’s availability this week. “I hope he’ll be available for practice,” Tomlin stated. Having said that, Mason Rudolph will be left in charge of the ball. Both he and us have performed admirably during the last two weeks. We have attended to the ball. He’s handled the ball well. We scored points at a rate that we hadn’t achieved this year up until now. We’re going to throw the ball over to him due to the urgency of the situation and those reasons.
According to Tomlin, Pickett was cleared to play against Seattle, but because it was late in the week, he was not used. Tuesday, he was marked as full.
“That clarity didn’t come until later in the week, and it was about the distribution of reps and who was best prepared and positioned to help us win,” Tomlin said. “And so, that’s the direction that we went with.”
Tuesday, Pickett discussed the matter, stating that he wants to play as a competitor and giving an explanation for why he chose not to dress for the Seattle game.
“If I was healthy enough to play and the coaches and trainers felt I looked good enough, I was going to start,” Pickett stated. “I wouldn’t dress or get ready for the game if they thought I wasn’t who they thought I wasn’t. It’s sad to see that without any basis or proof for it. I’m not sure where the claim originated, but it’s sort of strange what individuals would put out there in an attempt to support their careers or show a point.
“I’m on week two currently, four weeks after the procedure. I’ll get ready for Baltimore by dressing as the two and taking the necessary actions.”
Tomlin gave a response that is consistent with a guy who wants to be on the field when asked how Pickett is handling the circumstances.
“Dude, that guy is a rival,” Tomlin remarked. “He’s after the football. He’s a team player and wants to play at the same time. Thus, winning football games is currently on our objective. That must be the attitude of all people.”
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