Pittsburgh Steelers head Coach Mike Tomlin provided some hope Tuesday regarding Minkah Fitzpatrick, stating that the star safety is “improving” with his hamstring injury, and that the team was going to see what potential availability looked like for Week 10 against the Green Bay Packers later in the week.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Steelers beat writer Gerry Dulac popped that optimism ballon Tuesday. In his weekly chat with readers, Dulac stated rather clearly that Fitzpatrick is not expected to play Sunday, responding to a reader who asked about the transparency of Tomlin when it comes to injuries.
“He is much less transparent, even compared to other NFL coaches. As for Minkah, they are not expecting him to play, but the coach doesn’t want the Packers to know that,” Dulac wrote in his chat, according to the Post-Gazette.com.
Well, if Dulac is to be taken at his word, the Steelers will be without Fitzpatrick for the second straight game after he was injured early in the Week Eight matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Acrisure Stadium.
Fitzpatrick was ruled out rather quickly after suffering the injury in the first quarter of the 20-10 loss to the Jaguars and then missed the Thursday night matchup against the Tennessee Titans on a short week.
Tomlin stated rather plainly Tuesday during his weekly press conference that Fitzpatrick is getting healthier and didn’t rule him out.
“Minkah is improving. We’ll see what the week holds for him and see if there’s a potential for availability at the latter part of the week,” Tomlin said to reporters, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page.
Of course, Tomlin might not have been completely transparent, but there’s a cat-and-mouse game to injury statuses week to week in the league. It’s standard operating procedure. Tomlin providing that little nugget to reporters and stating it publicly ensures that the Packers have to prepare like Fitzpatrick will play, at least until told otherwise.
That’s how it goes in the NFL.
Though he had a few extra days to rest and recuperate, chances are greater that Fitzpatrick misses Sunday’s game against the Packers than he does actually play. Hamstrings are a tricky injury, considering they deal with a muscle. A small tweak can be a long setback, so it’s best to take it slow. The Steelers got by in Week Nine against the Titans with Damontae Kazee and Keanu Neal playing every down, and cornerback Patrick Peterson handling some safety reps in sub-package, allowing rookie CB Darius Rush to get onto the field.
If Fitzpatrick misses Week 10 against the Packers, the Steelers will likely deploy the same personnel as they did last Thursday night against young quarterback Jordan Love. We’ll see what Fitzpatrick’s status is Wednesday afternoon when the Steelers release their first injury report of the week.
