The Pittsburgh Steelers will play the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday afternoon on the road, the team’s twelfth regular season game of 2024. If you’re like me, you’re counting down the hours until the game begins. As usual, I will attempt to project the Steelers’ inactives for every game of the 2024 season and below is my best guess as to which players won’t be given helmets on Sunday afternoon against the Bengals.
Game inactives are officially announced 90 minutes before kickoff, so make sure you check back at that time to see the names of the players for both teams who will be sitting the game out. The roster rules make this exercise even harder, as teams can elevate up to two players from their practice squads to their active roster for gamedays. Teams can also dress up to 48 players for games if eight offensive linemen are dressed. The emergency quarterback rule is also still in place for the 2024 season.
OLB Alex Highsmith – The Steelers once again be without Highsmith on Sunday afternoon against the Bengals as the starting outside linebacker will miss the Week 13 contest due to an ankle injury sustained during the team’s Week 10 game. Highsmith, who was able to practice some on a limited basis this past week, was ultimately listed as doubtful on the team’s Friday injury report.
This will now mark the sixth game that Highsmith has missed this season. He missed three games during the first half of the regular season with a groin injury. The Steelers’ next game is a week from Sunday and perhaps Highsmith can resume practicing fully next week and give himself a chance to play in yet another AFC North contest. With Highsmith sidelined again this week, the Steelers outside linebackers will include T.J. Watt, Nick Herbig, Preston Smith, and Jeremiah Moon.
QB Kyle Allen – Against the Bengals on Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati, Allen is once again expected to be the team’s inactive third emergency quarterback. Allen resumed that role in the pecking order in Week 10. In Week 8, Allen was the active backup behind starting QB Russell Wilson as QB Justin Fields was designated the team’s emergency third quarterback for that game due to a minor hamstring injury. Allen did not play any snaps in that Week 8 game as he was not needed.
Prior to Wilson overcoming his early-season calf injury, Allen was active for games as the backup to Fields. Allen will be in uniform on Sunday afternoon against the Bengals, but he’ll only be allowed to enter the game if both Wilson and Fields are injured and unable to resume playing. Barring injuries to Wilson or Fields, look for Allen to remain in the emergency quarterback role moving forward.
G Max Scharping – In Cincinnati on Sunday afternoon against the Bengals, the Steelers will likely have one of their nine offensive linemen on their 53-man roster on the inactive list once again. With all nine offensive linemen on the 53-man roster currently healthy, Scharping is once again a prime candidate to be that lone inactive offensive lineman.
While Scharping was active for the two games prior to the team’s Week 10 game, he did not see any playing time on offense. He also only logged just one special teams snap in those two games he was active for. If Scharping is indeed inactive Sunday afternoon, and it will be a huge shock if he’s not, it will mark the sixth game this season he’s been on the list. The Steelers originally signed Scharping off the Washington Commanders’ practice squad on October 1.
RB Jonathan Ward – The Steelers once again chose not to activate CB Cory Trice Jr. off the Reserve/Injured list this week and that now means that Ward should at least get to spend another weekend on the team’s 53-man roster. Even so, Ward is a prime candidate to be inactive again on Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati and just as he has been the last two games.
The Steelers top three running backs on their 53-man roster, Najee Harris, Jaylen Warren, and Cordarrelle Patterson are also fully healthy, so there’s no real need for Ward to dress on Sunday night and even as a special teams addition.
WR Scotty Miller – The Steelers usually choose to dress just five wide receivers for games as they have only dressed more than that just once this season. Ever since the Steelers traded for WR Mike Williams a few weeks ago, Miller has only dressed and played in one game and that was mainly due to TE MyCole Pruitt missing that contest with a knee injury. It’s a good bet that Miller will be the fifth and final needed inactive player on the team’s list Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati against the Bengals.
The five wide receivers expected to dress and play Sunday afternoon in Cincinnati are George Pickens, Calvin Austin III, Van Jefferson, Ben Skowronek, and Williams.
