Some fantastic news on the final day of training camp for the Pittsburgh Steelers as Bob Labriola is reporting via Twitter that both running back Rashard Mendenhall and nose tackle Casey Hampton have been removed from the Active PUP list.
Mendenhall tore the ACL in his right knee in the Steelers regular season finale last year against the Cleveland Browns, while Hampton tore up his knee in the Steelers Wild Card game loss to the Denver Broncos.
While the return of Hampton is not so surprising, getting Mendenhall back this soon is. It was believed that he would start the season on the Active PUP list, which would have meant he would have missed the first 6 weeks of the season at a minimum.
Due to the new CBA rules, both players will not be able to start practicing until next week, but it appears that both might be able to suit up for action for at least the final preseason game, if not the one next week against the Buffalo Bills.
Once removed from the PUP list, players are no longer eligible for the regular season PUP list, so the moves being made this early speaks volumes about where the training staff believes both are from a health standpoint.
