Mike Tomlin's struggles on the road on Thursday Night Football are no secret at this point. The Pittsburgh Steelers head coach has led his team to a record of just 2-8 in road games on TNF, while going 0-6 against AFC North rivals in this setting. Thankfully, the Steelers just got the confidence boost they needed.
Just hours ahead of kickoff, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN announced that Trey Hendrickson will not play against the Steelers in Week 7 tonight. Hendrickson's status was in doubt leading up to the game after dealing with a hip/back injury.
This is a sign of relief for Tomlin and Arthur Smith's offense as Hendrickson is coming off back-to-back seasons of 17.5 sacks while finishing as the runner-up for the Defensive Player of the Year award in 2024.
But this wasn't the only lift the Steelers received ahead of Thursday Night Football.
Steelers' PR spokesperson, Burt Lauten, confirmed that Steelers' starting safety DeShon Elliott has arrived in Cincinnati and that he no longer has an injury designation. Elliott is expected to play tonight against the Bengals.
This is great news for a team that would love nothing more than to bury the Bengals and advance to 5-1 on the season. Despite Tomlin's ugly history on the road on TNF, the stars are aligning for the Steelers.
The Pittsburgh Steelers hold a major roster advantage over the Cincinnati Bengals ahead of TNF kickoff
If the Bengals' losing Trey Hendrickson wasn't enough by itself, Cincinnati won't have quarterback Joe Burrow until at least mid-December (if he even comes back this year). Coach Tomlin recently voiced his frustration with the Cleveland Browns' decision to trade quarterback Joe Flacco to the Bengals. But facing Flacco is still much better than going toe-to-toe with Burrow... and that's a win for Pittsburgh.
With Hendrickson and Burrow out, two of the top three players on the entire Bengals roster will not be available for tonight's game. On the other hand, the Steelers have an almost fully healthy roster. Though they will be without wide receiver Calvin Austin III, all of Pittsburgh's best players are slated to play tonight. Now Elliott will be joining them.
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Still, the Steelers can't take anything for granted tonight. Superstar receiver Ja'Marr Chase still can dictate the direction of the game and could make Pittsburgh's defense pay. But if Teryl Austin can find a way to bottle up Chase, Flacco could have a rough night.
In a way, it's almost hilarious how many breaks the Pittsburgh Steelers seem to have caught early in the 2025 season. The Baltimore Ravens recently fell to 1-5 without Lamar Jackson on the field for the past two games, and Joe Burrow might miss three months of action.
Mike Tomlin couldn't ask for a bigger break than what he's got in Week 7. With Elliott playing for the Steelers and Hendrickson out for the Bengals, snapping this ugly road streak on Thursday Night Football just got a bit easier.