For most players, working out in a gym in mid-March isn’t a news story. Guys are staying in shape and getting back into routine after taking some time off following a long season.
But for LB Cole Holcomb, it’s a different story. Holcomb suffered a severe left knee injury in Week Nine, spending the night in the hospital and ending his season. At the NFL Combine, GM Omar Khan admitted he wasn’t sure of Holcomb’s timetable to recover and though he was optimistic Holcomb would play again, framing it that way months after his injury indicates how serious the injury was.
But Holcomb is at least back working out. Working with well-known trainer Pete Bommarito, Holcomb shared clips to his Instagram story of him at the gym. You can see him wearing a black sleeve on his left knee.
Of course, Holcomb was working upper body and not shown doing any leg workouts. But the fact he’s on his feet and training is a positive sign.
Signed by the Steelers to a three-year deal ahead of the 2023 season, Holcomb was paying dividends before getting hurt. An every down linebacker, he and the rest of the inside linebacker group brought splash to the position missing in 2022. Before getting hurt, Holcomb posted 54 tackles (four for a loss) with two QB hits, two forced fumbles, and two pass deflections.
He suffered the injury on a Thursday night against the Tennessee Titans, colliding with teammate S Keanu Neal covering a crossing route over the middle of the field. Tumbling over, Holcomb immediately went to the ground clutching his left knee before being carted off the field.
It was the first of several inside linebacker injuries. Kwon Alexander tore his Achilles the following week while Elandon Roberts battled groin and pec injuries over the final month. It forced the Steelers to explore external options, bringing Myles Jack out of retirement and signing Blake Martinez off the Carolina Panthers’ practice squad weeks after he unretired. The team also added Mykal Walker while Mark Robinson saw increased reps.
During his year-end press conference, Tomlin said there was a target date for Holcomb to return.
“I’ll have a more definitive posture on that probably when we get closer to OTAs and we start speculating about some of those things then.”
But the Steelers biggest free agent splash was ex-Baltimore Ravens linebacker Patrick Queen, his three-year, $41 million contract the largest ever given to an outside free agent. Queen will obviously start while Roberts could play next to him. Holcomb’s video shouldn’t be definitive indication that he’ll be ready to start the season. But it’s the first public encouraging sign we’ve had since the injury. The next check-in could come at minicamp in the spring while we’ll see if Holcomb begins training camp on the Active/PUP list.
