Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen played through a severe case of the flu during Saturday’s playoff loss against the Baltimore Ravens. Per NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Queen needed multiple IVs just to take the field and wound up playing nearly every single snap.
If you’re a Ravens’ fan, you probably don’t love the big hug from QB Lamar Jackson post-game.
Queen finished the game with 10 tackles, tied for second-most of any Steeler, with one tackle for a loss. He served as the team’s every-down player wearing the green dot as the central hub of communication.
Against the Ravens, Queen only briefly left the game ostensibly related to his illness. Pittsburgh had a bug go around the locker room late in the season. It hit DL Cam Heyward for the season finale while K Chris Boswell was listed with an illness that prevented him from practicing Wednesday and Thursday leading up to the game.
Patrick Queen signed a three-year deal with the Steelers in the offseason. Defecting from the Ravens team that drafted him, a franchise that didn’t offer him a contract as he left, Queen finished the 2024 season with 129 total tackles to lead the Steelers. He also recorded seven pass breakups, two forced fumbles, and one sack. Durable and available, he missed only a handful of snaps over the course of the season.
Pittsburgh’s inside linebacker group could look similar in 2025. Queen and Payton Wilson are set to return. Veteran Elandon Roberts is a pending free agent but has expressed a desire to return. The bottom of the depth chart could shake up with Tyler Matakevich and Mark Robinson, while the Steelers will have a decision to make on LB Cole Holcomb, who missed the entire season stemming from his 2023 knee injury. He returned to practice over the final two weeks but wasn’t activated from the Reserve/PUP list. He is due a roster bonus at some point in 2025.
