Alex Highsmith suffered a low-ankle sprain and will be sidelined two to three weeks, his father, Sam Highsmith, tweeted on Tuesday afternoon.
Highsmith suffered an ankle injury in the fourth quarter of Pittsburgh’s Week 10 win over the Washington Commanders. He stepped on the foot of Commanders’ QB Jayden Daniels and his foot twisted awkwardly, causing him to fall to the ground in immediate pain. He was helped off the field by trainers and didn’t return to the game.
A low-ankle sprain was the best of the possibilities for Highsmith, as a high-ankle sprain likely would’ve sidelined him four to six weeks while a fracture would’ve ended his season, per Steelers Depot’s Melanie Friedlander.
While losing Highsmith for a key divisional stretch that includes games against the Ravens and Browns the next two weeks isn’t ideal, having Highsmith healthy down the stretch and for a potential postseason appearance is important, and it sounds like he avoided suffering a more serious injury.
The Steelers did a good job adding to their outside linebacker depth ahead of the trade deadline by acquiring Preston Smith, and Smith and Nick Herbig will need to step up while Highsmith recovers and gets healthy. The two- to three-week timeline is also the same that Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported yesterday, and if it holds true, then it means that Highsmith will likely avoid an IR stint, which would knock him out four games.
Highsmith has been playing some of his best football since returning from a groin injury that caused him to miss three games, and even though Herbig and Smith are capable replacements, Highsmith’s loss is going to be felt on Pittsburgh’s defense. It’s a tough stretch to lose him for, but it sounds as if the injury isn’t as bad as it could’ve been, and the Steelers will have Highsmith back for when things really start to matter in December and January. That’s an outcome I’m sure they’ll take.
