Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette gave a further update on two injured Steelers, as OLB Alex Highsmith is expected to miss 2-3 games with a groin injury while RB Jaylen Warren is week to week with a knee injury, per Dulac on Twitter.
Head coach Mike Tomlin already said Highsmith is out for this week, and it’s relatively good news that he’ll only miss one or two more games on top of that. In the interim, OLB Nick Herbig will take over his starting spot. Herbig had two sacks after replacing Highsmith in Pittsburgh’s Week 3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers.
The loss of Warren, if he does miss time, is mitigated a little bit by the fact that RB Najee Harris will have no limitations after he was seen with a sling on his arm in the locker room Monday. Tomlin hasn’t ruled Warren out for the Steelers’ matchup with the Indianapolis Colts yet, and the week-to-week timeline laid out by Dulac wouldn’t necessarily preclude him from playing on Sunday. If he doesn’t, the Steelers might use a heavier dose of Cordarrelle Patterson, who had four carries for 33 yards on Sunday, in the backfield.
It’s not ideal news for the Steelers, who are 3-0and have a road tilt with the Colts this weekend before returning home to play the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football. Both Warren and Highsmith are key contributors for the Steelers, and while Harris has taken the majority of carries in the backfield, the Steelers will miss Warren’s contributions in the passing game as a receiver and blocker.
Highsmith is one of the best pass rushers in football, and while Herbig has been really good, he’s not yet as polished as Highsmith. Still, this will be a big opportunity for him to take that next step, and he showed some of what he’s capable of doing in Week 3. The bigger drop-off will come with depth, as DeMarvin Leal will now take over as Pittsburgh’s OLB3 with no clear-cut OLB4 currently on the roster.
We’ll see just how long Highsmith misses and if Warren has to miss any time, but those are two big injury situations for the Steelers to monitor in the upcoming weeks.
