It was reported shortly after practice today that QB Russell Wilson is experiencing calf tightness, and he was listed as a limited participant at practice. Adam Schefter discussed this situation on NFL Live this afternoon.
“After nursing a calf injury during training camp, Russell Wilson felt tightness in his calf today,” Schefter said via ESPN’s NFL Live. “That’s not encouraging. The Steelers are unsure whether he’ll be able to play on Sunday. We’ll probably have a better idea tomorrow. If he can’t go, then Justin Fields would wind up starting against Atlanta. We’ll see how Wilson is feeling on Friday.”
For what it is worth, Mike Tomlin said his limited practice was out of an abundance of caution and mentioned it wouldn’t change the Steelers’ game planning at all for their regular-season opener. He was asked directly if there were any long-term concerns with his calf. Tomlin replied, “None.”
Along with Tomlin’s words, Wilson’s teammates didn’t even realize he was limited today. WR Van Jefferson was pretty confused when reporters asked him after practice who would be starting on Sunday.
Just listen to Jefferson here, via TribLive’s Chris Adamski on X.
Still, Schefter is as plugged in as anybody in the NFL and said that the Steelers are unsure of his status. Tomorrow’s practice—the last before the final injury designations are made—will be telling. If Wilson is limited again and gets a questionable designation for the game, then it will be time to worry.
Wilson initially injured his calf the day before training camp began while pushing a sled in the conditioning test. He told reporters at the time that he would have been practicing right away if it were up to him. Tomlin said he was holding Wilson out to prevent a minor issue from becoming a major one.
Tomlin did confirm that it was the same calf he injured in camp, which is obviously cause for some concern.
Just last season, Aaron Rodgers suffered an Achilles injury in Week 1, and some pointed to a calf strain that he had been nursing as a contributing factor. Soft-tissue injuries can be tricky in general, and the calf is even more concerning for a quarterback who has to drop back and maneuver the pocket. Not to mention Wilson is historically a mobile quarterback who has made a lot of his money escaping pressure and extending plays.
The silver lining is that Fields got extensive work with the Steelers’ first-team offense throughout training camp and the preseason. Most of the starting offense should be pretty comfortable working with him if that ends up becoming necessary.
