The Pittsburgh Steelers are hoping to have the services of defensive end Stephon Tuitt and safety Will Allen available to them for Sunday’s home game against the Oakland Raiders. After both only practiced on a limited basis Wednesday, Tuitt and Allen certainly aren’t ready to rule themselves out for the Week 9 game.
“Yep,” I’m ready to roll,” Tuitt said of his readiness for Sunday, according to Jacob Klinger of pennlive.com. “That’s the goal. That’s what we’re looking forward, looking really good right now.”
Tuitt has missed the Steelers last two games with a sprained knee so it will be interesting to see if he’s able to practice fully on Thursday. If he doesn’t, there’s probably a good chance that he misses a third-straight game.
Allen, on the other hand, hasn’t played since injuring his right ankle in the Week 5 Monday night game.
“I’m hoping to play,” Allen said, according to steelers.com. “That’s my goal. Hopefully the week goes well and I can just keep getting better as the week goes. I just have to get through the week and keep feeling good and then hopefully I’ll be ready to go on Sunday.”
Even if Allen is allowed to suit up for Sunday’s game, there’s probably a good chance he doesn’t start as safety Robert Golden has played well while filling in for the veteran, who has liked what he saw out of the Steelers secondary during the three-plus games that he’s missed.
“We were consistent,” Allen said. “We played lights out, everybody played well. Rob Golden is a smart player and he can make all the checks and put himself in position to play well. He and Mike (Mitchell) played well and the corners played well.
“It was good for (Golden) to get his feet wet and that’s what we needed. We need great depth in the secondary if a guy goes down. I think they played really well.”
The Steelers injury report for Thursday won’t be released for a few more hours, but we’ll pass it along to you as soon as it is made available.
