Devin Bush doesn’t believe the torn ACL he suffered just over one year ago is having any negative impact on his play this season. Talking to reporters Thursday, he says he pays no mind to the injury that ended his 2020 season.
“I think I’m over that part,” he said post-practice in audio provided by the team. “I think is just staying healthy now. I don’t have any apprehensions, nothing hold me back from playing. I don’t think too much about my injury as of right now. But I feel good. My body feels good. My knee feels good. So I’m just going out there and competing.”
Bush will face the Cleveland Browns Sunday, the last time he played against in 2020, tearing up his knee making a sideline tackle. He aggressively rehabbed during the offseason and was ready to go for the start of training camp, slightly limited by the team but overall, didn’t miss a beat. His actual play was up-and-down, something you could say about his pre-injury career too. Here’s how we evaluated his camp.
“His play on the field was mixed. There were positive moments, especially on underneath throws against Najee Harris in 1v1 and in team sessions. But he did tend to get beat downfield, especially against the Eagles, and he needs to improve his technique. To me, Bush tries to initiate too much contact and gets knocked off-balance because of it. His 2021 role is unclear with the Joe Schobert trade but if the Steelers don’t play much dime this season, Bush could still be a near-100% snap player.”
Bush hasn’t been an every-snap player this season but he’s come pretty close. In the games he’s been healthy start to finish, here are his snap count percentages:
Week 1 – 86%
Week 3 – 81%
Week 4 – 90%
Week 6 – 85%
Which averages out to about 85%. The only snaps he’s not playing are some dime snaps, rotating with Joe Schobert throughout the year, and the new 1-4-6 package with Robert Spillane getting the nod over Bush and Schobert.
Despite such a severe injury and so much missed time, Bush tried to see the upside in the time he was down for.
“I just see it as a bump in the road, honestly. I completed five, five weeks and unfortunately I got hurt. I don’t think I lost anything from that. I think I gained a lot through that.”
Physically, Bush has been cleared for weeks and months now. And according to him, Bush isn’t dealing with any psychological hurdles of the injury either. His play needs to get better but in Bush’s mind, it has nothing to do with overcoming the injury. That box has been checked.
