The Pittsburgh Steelers play the Green Bay Packers at home on Sunday night, and if you’re like me, you’re counting down the hours until the 8:20PM/EST contest begins. As usual, I will project the Steelers’ inactives for every game of the 2025 season, and below is my best guess as to which players won’t be given helmets against the Packers at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh.
Game inactives are announced 90 minutes before kickoff, so check back then to see the players for both teams who will be sitting the game out. Roster rules make this exercise even harder as teams can elevate up to two players from their practice squad to their active roster for gamedays. Also, teams can dress up to 48 players for games if eight are offensive linemen. The emergency quarterback rule remains in place for the 2025 season.
WR Scotty Miller – The Steelers won’t have Miller on Sunday night against the Packers as the veteran wide receiver will miss that contest due to a finger injury. Miller apparently sustained that finger injury on Thursday of this past week as he did not surface on the team’s injury report until then. Miller had previously practiced fully on Wednesday prior to being listed as a limited participant on Thursday. He failed to practice on Friday, and the team then proceeded to officially ruled him out for the Sunday night game against the Packers.
Sunday night will mark the first game this season that Miller has missed. In the team’s previous six games, Miller has registered one catch for 9 yards in 69 total offensive snaps played this season. Miller had also logged four special teams snaps as the Steelers enter Week 8. The Steelers will have WR Calvin Austin III back from his shoulder injury on Sunday night so his return will offset the team not having Miller.
G/T Andrus Peat – Not surprisingly, Peat has not yet been active for a game this season, and that is expected to carry over to the team’s Week 8 Sunday night home game against the Packers. Peat has served as a depth piece along the offensive line all season as he can play tackle and guard. While Peat did play some during the preseason, he has yet to take a regular-season snap for the team.
For the Steelers first six regular-season games, the team has dressed OT Calvin Anderson over Peat, and we should probably expect to see a repeat of that on Sunday night in Pittsburgh. The Steelers should dress eight offensive linemen against the Packers. That list should once again include Broderick Jones, Troy Fautanu, Isaac Seumalo, Mason McCormick, Zach Frazier, Spencer Anderson, Ryan McCollum, and Calvin Anderson.
OLB DeMarvin Leal – As expected, Leal was a healthy scratch once again for the team’s Week 7 road game. Leal has been inactive the last two games and mainly due to the team getting OLB Alex Highsmith back from his ankle injury after the bye week. With the Steelers back fully healthy at the outside linebacker position, Leal is likely to be inactive once again on Sunday night against the Packers. Leal has dressed and played in just two Steelers games this season after being signed off the team’s practice squad ahead of the Week 3 contest.
The Steelers only need four outside linebackers (Highsmith, T.J. Watt, Nick Herbig, and rookie Jack Sawyer) on Sunday night against the Packers. With Leal still remaining fifth in that position group on the depth chart, it would make sense for him to be a healthy scratch once again on Sunday night and thus one of the team’s four inactive players in Week 8.
DL Logan Lee – After being inactive for the team’s first four regular-season games, DL Esezi Otomewo has been active for the team’s last two games. With Otomewo active, Lee has been the odd one out on the defensive line. Lee had been active for the team’s first four regular-season games. That’s not a great recent trend for the Iowa product and 2024 draft selection. There is no reason to think that Lee won’t be a healthy scratch once again on Sunday night against the Packers.
There is, however, no guarantee that the Steelers will once again decide to sit Lee in favor of Otomewo on Sunday night. Should the team decide to reverse course and make Lee active against the Packers, Otomewo would likely be the odd one out on the defensive line.
