Category Archives: Steelers News

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Steelers Sign C/G Doug Legursky, Waive WR David Nelson

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The Steelers have signed former Steelers C/G Doug Legursky this morning. To make room for the signing, the team has placed WR David Nelson on the waived/injured list.

https://twitter.com/steelers/status/636153694908715008

The signing comes just the morning after Maurkice Pouncey had surgery to repair his broken ankle. Legursky started his career in 2008 as a UDFA and spent time on the Steelers practice squad. The following year he got a handful of reps across the line as a backup. He continued as a swing man across the middle until eventually replacing Maurkice Pouncey in the 2010 AFCCG and SuperBowl.

He was a free agent in 2013 and the Steelers didn’t re-sign him. He was signed by Buffalo, and was their starting left guard. Last year he was signed by the Chargers after their starting center fell to injury early in the season. Legursky only played a couple games before tearing his ACL which sidelined him for the year.

Legursky has battled with knee injuries the past couple seasons, and it wouldn’t be inaccurate to say he hasn’t exactly gotten better with age. As I said the other day, I expect the Steelers to roll with Cody Wallace at center, and if he goes down, then Legursky will be the next man up.

Maurkice-Pouncey

Pouncey Reportedly Had Surgery This Afternoon

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The Steelers wasted no time getting injured center Maurkice Pouncey into surgery. According to ESPN’s Chris Mortenson, Pouncey had surgery to repair his broken ankle bone this afternoon.

While the specific details of his injury haven’t been disclosed, I postulated last night that his injury is a broken fibula. These are the most common ankle breaks due to the size and weakness of the bone. Coach Tomlin will undoubtedly update Pouncey’s status later in the week. As I said last night, I imagine the team will start the injured center on IR with the return designation. That would keep Pouncey out for at least 8 weeks.

I expect the team will roll with Cody Wallace, and will want to bring in another center who can step up in case Wallace goes down.

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Steelers Vs. Packers Snap Counts

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Here is the player participation data from yesterday’s game at Heinz field. As you can see from the charts below, most of the offensive starters were in for 23 plays. Chris Hubbard replaced the injured Maurkice Pouncey at center, where he played for the remainder of the game. Bruce Gradkowski returned to game action after sitting out the first two preseason games due to a shoulder injury, but left the game after suffering an injury to his left hand. Landry Jones took his place and remained for the rest of the game.

On the defensive side of the ball, the division of labor was well spread, and the unit registered 6 sacks on the day. Dan McCullers made his return to preseason action. Holliman and Hemer saw significant drops in their participation from the previous week. Recently signed LB L.J. Fort was in for 7 defensive plays. One of which he sacked the QB.

Offense

Pos. No. Player Total
C 74 Christopher Hubbard 51
RG 67 B.J. Finney 51
RT 78 Alejandro Villanueva 51
QB 3 Landry Jones 41
WR 10 Martavis Bryant 33
TE 81 Jesse James 31
WR 19 Shakim Phillips 30
WR 14 Sammie Coates 30
OT 64 Mitchell Van Dyk 26
OT 69 Kelvin Palmer 25
LG 65 Miles Dieffenbach 25
WR 16 Tyler Murphy 24
WR 84 Antonio Brown 23
LT 68 Kelvin Beachum 23
LG 73 Ramon Foster 23
RG 66 David DeCastro 23
RT 77 Marcus Gilbert 23
QB 7 Ben Roethlisberger 23
TE 83 Heath Miller 22
WR 11 Markus Wheaton 22
LG 72 Cody Wallace 21
FB 45 Roosevelt Nix 21
TE 89 Matt Spaeth 20
HB 49 Jawon Chisholm 20
HB 26 Le’Veon Bell 19
WR 88 Darrius Heyward-Bey 15
LG 54 Collin Rahrig 15
HB 40 Braylon Heard 15
HB 34 DeAngelo Williams 14
C 53 Maurkice Pouncey 13
FB 46 Will C. Johnson 13
QB 5 Bruce Gradkowski 10
TE 80 Ray Hamilton 9
HB 13 Dri Archer 8
WR 82 Kenzel Doe 1

Defense

Pos. No. Player Total
CB 41 Antwon Blake 40
ILB 57 Terence Garvin 40
OLB 48 Bud Dupree 35
ILB 51 Sean Spence 34
SS 29 Shamarko Thomas 34
OLB 49 Shayon Green 28
CB 25 Brandon Boykin 24
CB 39 B.W. Webb 23
RE 97 Cameron Heyward 22
ILB 50 Ryan Shazier 22
FS 23 Michael Mitchell 22
CB 28 Cortez Allen 22
CB 22 William Gay 22
SS 38 Ian Wild 21
FS 20 Will Allen 21
LE 91 Stephon Tuitt 20
CB 30 Kevin Fogg 19
FS 21 Robert Golden 18
LE 78 Leterrius Walton 17
OLB 55 Arthur Moats 14
OLB 95 Jarvis Jones 14
CB 24 Doran Grant 14
RE 65 Joe Kruger 13
RE 67 Dominique D. Davis 13
OLB 40 Anthony Chickillo 13
RE 62 Daniel McCullers 12
OLB 44 Howard Jones 12
FS 33 Alden Darby 12
LE 93 Cam Thomas 11
LE 69 Matt Conrath 10
FS 37 Jordan Dangerfield 10
RE 79 Ethan Hemer 8
OLB 92 James Harrison 8
ILB 54 L.J. Fort 7
FS 42 Jordan Sullen 7
FS 31 Gerod Holliman 7
NT 64 Mike Thornton 6
LE 61 Joe Okafor 4
NT 90 Steve McLendon 3
Mike Tomlin

[Audio] Mike Tomlin On Today’s Win And Injuries

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Coach Tomlin addressed the media after today’s win against the Green Bay Packers. He spoke about the injuries in today’s game and talked briefly about how the team played. Here is a transcript.

“It feels good to make the necessary plays, especially at home. The game was not perfect by any stretch. We stopped ourselves on offense early in the game and had a pre-snap penalty at midfield, but we overcame that. We also had an offensive pass interference penalty. Defensively, we warmed up to it, which we can’t afford to do. However, I thought they performed above the line once they settled in.

“Probably a significant element of the game that created adversity for us were those two turnovers, one late in the second quarter and the other early in the third quarter. We can’t have those happen. I think Green Bay got 10 points off of those turnovers and it created an atmosphere we had to overcome. Thankfully, we did. We had good energy and teamwork in the stadium today.

“On the injury front, Maurkice Pouncey has an ankle injury and we’ve evaluated it. It’s probably going to be surgical, but I don’t know the length of time he will be out. We will analyze that after he has the procedure done. Stephon Tuitt has an ankle injury, which appears to be just your classic ankle injury. He will be out a couple of weeks, or so. Also, Bruce Gradkowski had a finger injury. Other than that, we just had the normal bumps and bruises.

“I’m sure the next time we get together, I will be able to get you an update on the status of Pouncey. It’s part of the game and we don’t overanalyze it. It’s as much a part of the game as blocking or tackling. We will make the necessary adjustments and I expect the ball to keep rolling, because that’s the business we are in.”

Here is the audio:

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Stephon Tuitt Leaves Game After Ankle Injury

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Not long after Maurkice Pouncey left the game with an apparent ankle injury, DE Stephon Tuitt has been taken to the lockers with a similar looking injury. He will not return to the game.

Tuitt was the victim of friendly fire when S Shamarko Thomas came in to make a tackle. Pouncey is receiving an MRI according to KDKA.

 

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Steelers Release QB Tajh Boyd, Sign WR Jarrod West

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The Steelers announce that they have released Tajh Boyd this morning. Rookie receiver Jarrod West has been signed.

https://twitter.com/SteelersPRBurt/status/633637103096737792

West had a tryout in camp last week, but the team signed WR David Nelson instead. Nelson injured his shoulder shortly after signing. He went undrafted out of Syracuse this year. The former Orange receiver is 6’3, 212 lbs. He caught 49 passes his last season for a total of 700 yards under 4 different quarterbacks.

Boyd didn’t play a single down during the first two preseason games. The Steelers activated Bruce Gradkowski last week, which meant Boyd’s days were limited. The former Clemson quarterback was drafted in the sixth round by the Jets in ’14, but cut during preseason last year.

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Report: Gradkowski Says He’s Returning To Practice

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According to Scout reporter Jim Wexell, backup quarterback Bruce Gradkowski says he’ll be practicing today. At the time of this writing, there has been no official word from the team about his PUP status.

https://twitter.com/jimwexell/status/632967404776259584

Gradkowski began camp on the PUP list with a shoulder injury. He has been seen throwing more and more as of late though, so his return doesn’t seem surprising. We’ll find out for sure very soon.

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Steelers Vs. Jaguars Player Participation Data

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Here is the offensive and defensive player participation data from last night preseason match versus the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Offense

Pos. # Name Snaps
WR 10 Martavis Bryant 20
TE 83 Heath Miller 7
LT 68 Kelvin Beachum 17
LG 73 Ramon Foster 17
C 53 Maurkice Pouncey 7
RG 66 David DeCastro 17
RT 77 Marcus Gilbert 17
WR 11 Markus Wheaton 7
WR 84 Antonio Brown 7
QB 7 Ben Roethlisberger 7
HB 26 Le’Veon Bell 6
WR 14 Sammie Coates 44
WR 18 C.J. Goodwin 14
WR 88 Darrius Heyward-Bey 19
TE 80 Ray Hamilton 17
LT 78 Alejandro Villanueva 63
LG 74 Christopher Hubbard 24
LG 65 Miles Dieffenbach 39
C 61 Reese Dismukes 52
C 72 Cody Wallace 21
RG 67 B.J. Finney 63
RT 64 Mitchell Van Dyk 24
RT 69 Kelvin Palmer 39
TE 89 Matt Spaeth 14
WR 19 Shakim Phillips 43
TE/WR 81 Jesse James 40
QB 3 Landry Jones 73
QB 16 Tyler Murphy 54
FB 45 Roosevelt Nix 8
FB 46 Will C. Johnson 24
HB 13 Dri Archer 29
HB 49 Jawon Chisholm 30
HB 34 DeAngelo Williams 10
HB 25 Josh Harris 7

Defense

Pos. # Name Snaps
LE 91 Stephon Tuitt 27
NT 90 Steve McLendon 12
RE 97 Cameron Heyward 14
OLB 55 Arthur Moats 19
ILB 50 Ryan Shazier 41
OLB 95 Jarvis Jones 19
CB 28 Cortez Allen 17
FS 29 Shamarko Thomas 36
FS 20 Will Allen 17
CB 22 William Gay 17
LE 79 Ethan Hemer 28
LE 65 Joe Kruger 17
LE 61 Joe Okafor 3
NT 64 Mike Thornton 16
NT 93 Cam Thomas 31
RE 69 Matt Conrath 21
RE 67 Dominique Davis 3
RE 78 Leterrius Walton 24
OLB 40 Anthony Chickillo 21
OLB 48 Bud Dupree 33
ILB 51 Sean Spence 45
ILB 56 Jordan Zumwalt 28
ILB 57 Terence Garvin 31
OLB 92 James Harrison 11
OLB 44 Howard Jones 16
OLB 49 Shayon Green 25
CB 30 Kevin Fogg 37
CB 41 Antwon Blake 17
CB 24 Doran Grant 28
SS 38 Ian Wild 25
SS 33 Alden Darby 14
FS 37 Jordan Dangerfield 36
FS 42 Jordan Sullen 15
FS 31 Gerod Holliman 16
CB 25 Brandon Boykin 13
CB 39 B.W. Webb 19
mike Tomlin

Coach Tomlin On Last Night’s Loss To Jacksonville

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After last night’s 23-21 loss to the Jaguars, Coach Tomlin addressed the media. Here’s what he had to say.

“Not the outcome that we desired but there were some awesome situations for the group to be in. Some positive things, obviously, and some negative things. We played tonight and we will analyze tomorrow. I think the energy and effort of the guys…we just came up a little short.

“On the injury front, we got out pretty injury free. Josh Harris has a foot. Don’t know the extent of that but we take a look at it. Lawrence Timmons didn’t play in the game because he hurt his toe after we met the other day in practice. We held him out of the football game. We will watch that and hopefully it’s a day-to-day thing as opposed to a week type thing.

“Largely, I liked some of the things that were displayed on the field. Obviously, it would have been nice to finish the game out, but we didn’t. We take responsibility for that. We have a lot of things to learn from and got a good look at a lot of different guys in a lot of different circumstances.”

So, the good news is that there appear to be no serious injuries coming out of last night’s game. Hopefully Timmon’s toe is indeed just a minor ‘bump and bruise’ type of injury. Here’s what Tomlin had to say when asked about late game adjustments last night.

“The game situations presented that. It was great to be in a good, close game and be challenged in the way we were challenged. Special teams produced a turnover when we needed one. The offense was able to follow it up.

“Obviously, we were not able to stop those guys from going down the field. We helped them some, we were penalized some but as were they. That is a sign of this time of year. I’m sure neither one of us is happy with the penalties, but that is life.”

On whether he needs to see more from the first team offense.

“Absolutely. Shoot, they only played a drive or two of football. We have to play 60 minutes of winning football. We are going to go through this process and work to that. I like the start to that, but it was just a start.”

The team has today off. They’ll break down the tape from last night’s game and resume practice tomorrow to begin the last week of training camp.

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What To Look For Tonight- Steelers Vs. Jaguars

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The Steelers kickoff in Jacksonville at 7:30 tonight. Here some things to keep an eye on during tonight’s game.

No injuries. The end. Thanks for reading. Seriously though, let’s just get through tonight (and all of preseason) without losing another player to a serious injury.

Jarvis Jones

I’m not the guy to beat the drum that is that somewhat tired narrative, but I’m as anxious as anyone to see how JJ looks this year. It’s hard to predict how much playing time he’ll see tonight, but I’m looking forward to seeing how he looks.

Le’Veon Bell

Bell had an amazing season last year, and by his own accounts and shared photos, he’s in even better shape now. The star running back will likely only be in for a couple drives at best tonight, but I wouldn’t be surprised if broke a couple ankles. According to his Twitter profile, he plans on putting on a show. (I don’t know why he uses the hashtag “Juice” so much).

https://twitter.com/L_Bell26/status/632222720961351680

Dri Archer

Speaking of running backs, Dri Archer showed improvement during the Hall of Fame game last Sunday. While he certainly made some mistakes, I’m hoping to see him build on last week’s showing.

Cam Thomas

OK, hear me out. I was one of his biggest detractors last season, but honestly, he looked like a different player last week. I can think of some possible reason as to why that was the case, but I’ll reserve my opinion until I see more.

Garrett Hartley

We get to see what the new guy can do. He did well in practice on Wednesday. Obviously tonight will be a big test for him. Obviously.

Doran  Grant

Grant didn’t see any defensive playing time last week. Tonight we should get a look at how the rookie responds to live game action. Knuckle up.

Jesse James

The young tight end had some pretty grotesque drops last week. Maybe it was jitters. Maybe the death of his friend did have an impact on his focus as some reports suggested. Either way, we’ll see if he can bounce back tonight, or if he continues raising questions about his hands.