A thumb injury prevented Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Antwon Blake from practicing on Wednesday but the former undrafted free agent said Thursday morning that he expects to practice later in the day, according to Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Blake was spotted wearing a cast on Wednesday, so the injury certainly has some level of significance to it. However, head coach Mike Tomlin didn’t mention Blake during his rundown of the team’s injuries when he talked to the media on Tuesday.
Blake has been very inconsistent so far this season in both coverage and tackling. He did, however, return an interception for touchdown in the second half of the Week 5 Monday night game against the San Diego Chargers.
According to Pro Football Focus, Blake has given up 32 catches for 407 yards and a touchdown so far this season in addition to missing 10 total tackles.
Should Blake ultimately be unable to play on Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs, second-year cornerback Ross Cockrell figures to be the one to replace him in the Steelers base defense. Additionally, seldom-used cornerback Brandon Boykin would likely play the slot corner position in the Steelers nickel defense should Blake sit out the game.
The Steelers Thursday injury report will be released later in the day.
