With the Friday injury report now out for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Saturday roster move behind us, we can now look at the projected inactive list for the Sunday game against the Washington Redskins.
4 of the 7 names on the list this week will be inactive this week because those players have been ruled out for the game due to injuries. Those players are: Marcus Gilbert, Troy Polamalu, Rashard Mendenhall, and Brandon Johnson. That leaves tthree spots left to be filled on the inactive list.
Troy Polamalu – Polamalu remains sidelined with his calf injury and there has been no timetable given as to when he might be able to return. A best guess would be that the Steelers are hoping that he can suit up for the first game against the Baltimore Ravens. The Steelers safety was ruled out of this game on Tuesday by head coach Mike Tomlin.
Marcus Gilbert – Gilbert was ruled out on Tuesday as well as he has yet to recover from the ankle injury sustained in the game against the Tennessee Titans. Gilbert has already flown to North Carolina to see a specialist and the good news that came out of that visit was that the tendon did not require surgery. Rookie Mike Adams will continue to start in the place of Gilbert at right tackle while he is out and he could take over the spot fulltime depending on how he plays the next few games.
Brandon Johnson – The linebacker injured his hamstring against the Cincinnati Bengals and was unable to finish the contest as a result. Johnson was able to practice on a limited basis on Wednesday, but sat out the Thursday and Friday practices. He was officially ruled out of this game on the Friday injury report.
Rashard Mendenhall – Mendenhall was unable to practice for a second straight week as he continues to recover from a strained Achilles that he suffered in the Thursday night game against the Titans. The Steelers aren\’t likely to rush Mendenhall back until he is 100%, so it would not be surprising to see him miss more time moving forward. Mendenhall, like the other three players already listed above, was ruled out on the Friday injury report.
Charlie Batch – There is nothing to suggest that Batch will suit up this week, so the veteran quarterback is likely to be inactive on Sunday once again against the Redskins.
DeMarcus Van Dyke – Van Dyke will likely lose his helmet this week after committing four penalties on special teams in the last three games. The Steelers promoted safety Damon Cromartie-Smith to the 53 man roster from the practice squad on Saturday as Tomlin follows through with his threat to sit egregious penalty offenders.
Isaac Redman – The final spot on the inactive list this week will most likely go to either Redman or linebacker Adrian Robinson. Redman was only able to go limited in practice all three days this week as he attempts to return from an ankle injury that suffered against the Titans. Robinson suffered a concussion late in the game against the Bengals, but he was able to practice fully on Friday after being limited on Wednesday and Thursday. I am going to guess that Tomlin errs on the side of caution this week with Redman, but this decision might not be made until right two hours before kickoff. Should Redman wind up dressing, Jonathan Dwyer is still expected to get the start at running back.
