Though the Pittsburgh Steelers don’t hit the practice field until Thursday, they get down to business tomorrow. Wednesday is when the players report to St. Vincent College to begin their 2023 training camp. Tomorrow is about checking in, getting settled, doing the conditioning test, and from a procedural standpoint, potentially placing any players on the Physically Unable To Perform (PUP) list.
It’s always unclear which – if any – players will get placed on there. But Pittsburgh Post-Gazette beat writer Ray Fittipaldo believes ILB Cole Holcomb could be one of those guys. In his Tuesday chat ahead of camp, Fittipaldo said Holcomb could be held out to start practice.
“It wouldn’t surprise me if Holcomb starts on PUP. They’re going to be careful with him and make sure he’s ready before they put him out there.”
As Fittipaldo alludes to, if Holcomb is placed on the PUP list, it would be out of caution more than anything else. His 2022 season ended early last season with a foot injury. Signed to a three-year deal by Pittsburgh in the offseason, he was reportedly limited during OTAs and minicamp, mostly working individually and not in full team sessions. There’s every reason to believe he’ll be ready for Week One against the San Francisco 49ers.
Players who begin camp on Active/PUP are not eligible to practice but can be removed from PUP at any point. If Holcomb lands there, it’ll lead to more opportunities for Mark Robinson, Tanner Muse, and Nick Kwiatkoski. Robinson seemed to soak up most of the reps in the spring but DC Teryl Austin downplayed his 2023 role and the team added the veteran Kwiatkoski in June.
It’s possible no Steelers are placed on PUP tomorrow. It’s also possible there are surprise names. Last season, Minkah Fitzpatrick began camp on the Non-Football Injury (NFI) list after suffering a wrist injury falling off his bike while on vacation. He was activated roughly a week later. Veteran nose tackle Tyson Alualu was placed on PUP to begin 2022 while recovering from injury and was activated a few days after Fitzpatrick.
One potential “surprise” name could be TE Pat Freiermuth, who seemed limited with an injury during the spring. WR Allen Robinson II, like Holcomb, is coming off foot surgery and was limited early on in spring but seemed to expand his reps throughout offseason workouts.
