Mike Tomlin addressed the media on Tuesday, and the most recent Pittsburgh Steelers news regarding injuries is far from encouraging.
We knew that this string of good health wasn’t guaranteed to last. Since T.J. Watt returned from a pectoral injury and arthroscopic knee surgery, the Pittsburgh Steelers were one of the healthier teams in the league with just a few backups on injured reserve and the rest of the squad looking healthy.
Unfortunately, Pittsburgh suffered a few big blows to their roster on Sunday against the Ravens. The lastest Steelers news pertains to injuries, and it could affect the way this team finishes out the season.
Steelers news
After leaving the Steelers vs Ravens game early in the first quarter and entering concussion protocol, we knew that the status of Kenny Pickett was going to be up in the air this week. Sadly, Mike Tomlin confirmed that with his remarks during his Week 15 press conference. The Steelers head coach did not give an answer about who would be under center this week against the Carolina Panthers.
Pittsburgh doesn’t yet have a backup plan in the event that Kenny Pickett isn’t cleared to play — at least not one that Tomlin was willing to share with the media. Mitch Trubisky led the charge against the Ravens and did a good job moving the chains, but his three interceptions made it impossible for the Steelers to mount a comeback.
Tomlin didn’t completely close the door on he idea of Mason Rudolph and Mark Kaboly of The Athletic seems to think the door is cracked for him to be the stop-gap starter this week.
More Steelers news
We recently learned of some very discouraging Steelers news. The team feared that defensive lineman Chris Wormley suffered a major injury during Sunday’s loss to the Ravens, and this, unfortunately, appears to be the case. During his press conference, Tomlin labeled the injury ‘significant’ and confirmed that it will require surgery.
Wormley’s surgery is fully expected to end his 2022 season with the Steelers, but this could also be the end of his time in Pittsburgh. Wormley was set to enter his final four games under contract before becoming a free agent. Depending on the severity of the injury, Wormley will likely spend the 2023 offseason rehabbing.
At 29 years old and no longer under contract after this year, it’s looking grim that Wormley will be part of the future plan in Pittsburgh.
NFL news
The Arizona Cardinals suffered a massive blow on Monday Night Football as Kyler Murray went down with a non-contact injury on a quarterback run. Murray was clearly in pain and needed to be carted off the field. It was later confirmed that he had suffered a torn ACL. This will require surgery and end his 2022 season. At $46.1 million in annual earnings, Murray is the NFL’s third most expensive player, and the Cardinals are hoping he can rehab quickly and be ready to return next summer.