The last thing a fledgling offense needs is for their starting quarterback to sustain an injury, but that is the exact circumstance the Steelers are tasked with as an arch rival comes to town this Sunday.
If the level of participation in the first day of this week's practice serves as any indicator, the arrow could be pointing up.
After Wednesday's practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, Kenny Pickett affirmed he will be "ready to go" for Sunday's game against the Ravens after he practiced in a limited capacity. There was some initial concern for a long-term injury with his left knee, but said he "got lucky that it was what it was" -- a bone bruise -- and that he will push to play on Sunday. He wore a large knee brace in Wednesday's practice, and it will be determined on Sunday morning if he has to wear it during the game.
Pickett also added he didn't have any physical limitations to what he was able to do in Wednesday's practice.
"No (limitations). I think by Sunday I'll be good," Pickett said. "... It feels good. I'm confident with the plan that we have. By Sunday, I'll feel a lot better and I'll be good to go."
Mike Tomlin noted in Tuesday's press conference Pickett will be monitored closely and progressively as this week goes on. Mitch Trubisky would be in line to start if Pickett is unable to go against the Ravens, but nothing will be determined, at the very earliest, until the end of the week.
Here is a clip of Pickett jogging around and throwing while wearing a large brace on his left knee Wednesday:
The Steelers are dealing with a slew of injuries, affecting nearly half of their offensive starters, with some issues lingering over recent weeks. Tomlin confirmed that Dan Moore Jr. will be out this week due to a knee sprain, while Pat Freiermuth is considered doubtful with a hamstring injury. James Daniels missed Sunday's game due to a groin injury, and Diontae Johnson remains on injured reserve, with his earliest possible return not expected until after the bye week due to a hamstring injury.
Additionally, Allen Robinson needed a gradual return to practice last week due to an ankle injury before being cleared to play. Chukwuma Okorafor has been dealing with an elbow injury, Darnell Washington has missed practice time with a knee injury, and Connor Heyward dealt with an ankle issue that caused him to miss a practice last week.
Moore, Okorafor, Daniels, Freiermuth and Isaac Seumalo (veteran rest) did not practice Wednesday.
Injuries aside, the Matt Canada offense has not been kind to start this season, as the Steelers rank 29th in the NFL in total offense through four games. The Ravens, meanwhile, boast the No. 3 total defense and No. 7 rushing defense by allowing 260.8 and 92.5 yards per game on those fronts, respectively. The Texans held the Steelers to a season-low 225 yards of total offense.
After Wednesday's practice, Najee Harris gave a strong take on the Steelers' coaching decisions versus the players going out to execute their plans on a game-to-game basis:
"The coaches only can coach, but at the end of the day we've got to do what we have to do," Harris said. "I see everybody talking about this coaches stuff, about play calling, but do y'all know how football works? Coaches only can coach, but we've got to execute the plays. We're not trying to point the finger at all. This is not the time to do that, either. There keeps being a conversation being brought up -- not even a conversation, things that's just talked about so much. It's crazy. We have to execute at the end of the day no matter who's back there calling the plays. Know what I mean?
"I'd honestly say that we're not doing that right now. Not coaches. It has nothing to do with coaches. Just players. We have to play better. We can't just keep looking at the coaches as an outlet or whatever y'all are putting out there as outlets. It's just stupid what y'all are doing, really. We can say what we want, but like I said, players play and coaches coach. We can't just keep looking and pointing fingers. We've got to point at ourselves. It's the man in the mirror, really. This is the NFL. Everybody runs the same damn plays. Everybody disguises it differently but it's just how we're going to play it, and truthfully I just don't think we're playing with that edge right now, and that's what we need to do better."
Broderick Jones is in line to block for whoever the quarterback will be, as he is in line to slide into Moore's spot and start at left tackle against the Ravens. The 14th-overall pick in the 2023 draft played in 51 snaps Sunday after Moore exited the game.
Just as any reserve in a general sense would, Jones said he has been preparing through the previous four weeks as if he was going to be the starter:
"It's the same, always. Because you know you're always one play away, one play away," Jones said prior to Wednesday's practice. "We always say that, so you know we always try to prepare to the best of our ability even if you're not a starter because you never know. ... It was good for me just to get a feel for it in live action instead of going against the team like I've been doing for the last couple of weeks. It was solid for me to be able to go out there and get a feel for the game."
