Steelers Make Roster Move With Pro Bowler, Update T.J. Watt’s Injury Status

Getty Head coach Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers made a roster move with a Pro Bowl player ahead of the matchup with the Baltimore Ravens.

The Pittsburgh Steelers will face arguably the best kicker in the league in Week 14, but they will also have their Pro Bowl kicker back on the roster.

The Steelers announced on December 10 that they activated kicker Chris Boswell. In a corresponding move, Pittsburgh released fellow kicker Matthew Wright.

Boswell made his last appearance on October 23 versus the Miami Dolphins and went on injured reserve on November 10. He missed the last five games because of a groin injury.

The 2017 Pro Bowl kicker returned to practice on December 8. He is getting back on the field just in time for a key matchup with the Baltimore Ravens. The Ravens will feature 5-time All-Pro kicker Justin Tucker, who hasn’t missed a kick inside of 50 yards this season.

On December 10, the Steelers also updated the injury status for All-Pro edge rusher T.J. Watt and a couple other key players. Pittsburgh listed Watt has questionable because of a rib injury throughout the week, but he will now enter Week 14 with no injury designation.

Wide receiver Diontae Johnson and linebacker Malik Reed also had questionable tags this week, but like Watt, the Steelers dropped the questionable designation for both Johnson and Reed on December 10.

Boswell Returns, Steelers Release Wright

The return of Boswell to practice on December 8 was a great sign that the 2017 Pro Bowl kicker was close to being ready to rejoin the active roster. With Boswell back at practice, the Steelers began the kicker’s 21-day window for the team to activate him.

It took all of 2 days for that to happen.

During the first five weeks of the season, Boswell wasn’t quite as accurate as he’s been in the past. He went 9-for-13 on field-goal tries in those five games, which included a 1-for-3 effort in Week 5 against the Buffalo Bills.

But Boswell has posted a field-goal percentage of at least 90% five times in his eight-year career. Coming into 2022, he made 90.0% of his field goals or more in each of the last three seasons, going 84-for-91 overall (92.3%) from 2019-21.

That type of accuracy could be vital for the Steelers in the division showdown against the Ravens. Sixteen of the last 31 matchups between Pittsburgh and Baltimore have been decided by 3 points or fewer.

Boswell is an upgrade at kicker for the Steelers, but Wright kicked well for Pittsburgh in Boswell’s absence. In four games with Pittsburgh, Wright went 12-for-14 (85.7%) on field goals and made all 7 of his extra points.

Watt, Johnson Off the Injury Report

The Steelers received other good news on the injury front on December 10.

Barring an unforeseen setback in pregame warmups, Watt, Johnson and Reed will all play with no injury designation.

Watt missed seven games this season because of a pectoral injury and now he’s gutting through a rib issue.

Johnson was limited in practice during the week because of a hip ailment, but there was never a strong indication that he wouldn’t play. Johnson has missed just two games in his four-year career.

The Steelers initially listed Reed questionable because of a back injury. But he was a full participant at practice at the end of the week and is ready to go in Week 14.