As the Pittsburgh Steelers get set to face to Cleveland Browns this Sunday, most of the attention has focused on two things: the starters that Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has chosen to rest vs. the Browns; and outside linebacker T.J. Watt’s candidacy for Defensive Player of the Year.
But placekicker Chris Boswell’s ongoing injury issues—first he dealt with a hip problem that kept him out against Washington, now he has a groin issue—are potentially a real problem for the Steelers this weekend, and not just because the team wants and needs Boswell healthy for the playoffs.
Matthew Wright in 2020
Boswell has missed two games this season (including last week’s showdown against the Colts), and in both cases, practice squad kicker Matthew Wright was elevated to the active roster and filled in capably. Wright has converted 6-of-6 extra points and made his only field goal attempt—a 37-yarder. His main shortcoming is a noticeable lack of leg strength; he can’t reach the end zone with his kickoffs and Tomlin eschewed a 45-yard field goal attempt from Wright when he made his NFL debut against Washington.
From a performance perspective, the Steelers probably don’t have reservations about using Wright for a second week in a row, especially when one considers that they are already resting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and three other starters and probably wouldn’t mind giving Boswell more time to heal before the playoffs.
However, Wright is out of roster exemptions, so if the Steelers want to play him versus the Browns they will need to sign him to the 53-man roster. (For the first two games in which he appeared, he was elevated from the practice squad and then automatically reverted back after the game.)
Last Week’s Roster Move Gamble
The Steelers had a very similar scenario unfold just last week, when the team waived one of its 2019 draft choices to make room on the roster for inside linebacker Tegray Scales, who had been elevated from the practice squad for the losses to Buffalo and Cincinnati and had therefore used up his (two) roster exemptions.
Two days later, the Jacksonville Jaguars claimed Gray on waivers, making it the second time in two seasons that the Steelers lost a developmental offensive line prospect to another AFC team. (During the 2019 season, the Steelers lost Fred Johnson to the Cincinnati Bengals; Johnson ended up starting at left tackle against the Steelers when the two teams met in Cincinnati in December.)
We will probably have a good idea as to whether Boswell will be available for the Browns game when Pittsburgh updates its injury report late Friday afternoon. (Boswell practiced on Wednesday, then missed yesterday’s practice entirely.) But the Steelers probably won’t make a final decision on Boswell until Saturday or even Sunday, owing to the roster move requirement and the fact that Boswell seems good-to-go on some days and then suddenly unavailable the next.
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Chris Boswell Injury Could Force Another Risky Steelers Roster Move