The Steelers are now back at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, facing down a long regular season that looks a lot more promising given how things have gone leading up to it. Finishing just above .500 last year, they anticipate being able to compete with any team in the league this season with second-year QB Kenny Pickett leading the way.
They’ve done a great deal to address what they identified as their shortcomings during the offseason, which included addressing the offensive and defensive lines as well as the secondary and the inside linebacker room, which is nearly entirely different from last year. The results have been positive so far.
Even well into the regular season and beyond, there are going to be plenty of questions that need answered. When will the core rookies get to play, or even start? Is the depth sufficient where they upgraded? Can they stand toe-to-toe with the Bengals and the other top teams in the league? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout the season, as we have for many years.
Question: Will Minkah Fitzpatrick land on the Reserve/Injured List?
Hamstring injuries have a tendency to get tricky. If you try to come back from one too soon, it will set you back. TE Pat Freiermuth found that out a couple weeks ago and had to go on the shelf after aggravating his injury. WR Diontae Johnson spent five weeks on the Reserve/Injured List before he came back from his hamstring injury.
Will S Minkah Fitzpatrick be the next to go on ice while dealing with a hamstring injury for the Steelers? He suffered his early in the game on Sunday against the Jacksonville Jaguars in a non-contact situation, going down in a heap and promptly exiting the game.
There was never any realistic chance that he wouldn’t miss Thursday’s game against the Tennessee Titans, but beyond that, it’s always hard to say how long such an injury might take to heal. Reportedly, the Steelers now fear that it could be a little while.
While Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter Gerry Dulac said that the results of an MRI had the team hopeful Fitzpatrick’s hamstring injury may not be as significant as those suffered by Johnson and Freiermuth, that doesn’t necessarily mean he will avoid being placed on IR.
It all depends, of course, on how much time they fear he might miss. A player must miss at least four games (not weeks, but games) when placed on IR, so it would be crucial for them to get him on the list before Thursday’s game so that this week would count toward that.
Though Cameron Heyward appears to be on the verge of returning, the defense cannot hold up with these key injuries to their stars. They are the only thing propping up this roster right now against an underperforming offense, so the sooner Fitzpatrick can return without risk of re-injury, the better.
