Last week, Mike Tomlin said that it didn’t seem as if Will Howard would need surgery for the broken pinky he suffered in practice. Howard confirmed that he won’t need surgery to reporters before practice on Tuesday.
According to ESPN’s Brooke Pryor, Howard said he avoided surgery but isn’t sure he’ll be able to do anything in the preseason.
It’s positive for Howard that he won’t need surgery, and it should keep him within the three-week timeline that was initially reported. It’s still unlikely he’ll be able to participate in the preseason given that the team’s final game comes on Aug. 21, and he suffered the injury early last week. The ramp-up, even if he does return to practice to get him ready for a game, makes it unlikely he’ll play. It’s tough for him as he tries to establish himself as a rookie.
It’s an unfortunate injury and the timing is tough for Howard, but he’s still doing as much as he can, taking some reps on air with the quarterbacks in practice on Monday. Throughout minicamp and training camp, he’s learned from QB Aaron Rodgers, and Howard should find himself on Pittsburgh’s 53-man roster to begin the season.
It’s good that Howard avoided a more serious injury and won’t need surgery. He still has a brace on his hand to stabilize his finger, and he’s keeping his mind right and trying to stay hopeful that he can potentially contribute at some point in the preseason. While Howard likely won’t have many chances this season, it’s a good opportunity for him to learn and develop behind Rodgers and Mason Rudolph as he tries to stick as a quarterback in the NFL.
There’s a lot of excitement around Howard, who won a national championship at Ohio State last season. He was a player who a lot of people were excited to watch in the preseason. Even though that’s unlikely now, Howard has still done all the right things this offseason. That includes getting in the work he can during his rehab process and trying to take mental reps.
Howard obviously won’t return to the practice field at Saint Vincent College with today being the last day of training camp, but he should be able to get some reps in and hopefully will be healthy ahead of Week 1.
