It appears the Pittsburgh Steelers will be without defensive lineman Derrick Harmon for a few weeks. But he will play again this season.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported the overall positive update on Harmon on Sunday morning.
“Steelers DT Derrick Harmon, who was carted off Thursday night with a foot injury, is expected to miss a few weeks, source said,” wrote Rapoport.
“IR would be a consideration for Harmon, though, it’s not definite. Either way, not a long-term injury.”
Harmon missing any amount of time is bad news for the Steelers. So, one could argue Rapoport’s update was still not great for the Steelers defense.
But with the Amazon Prime stream of the Steelers-Browns matchup Thursday caught Harmon with a boot on his foot, Harmon missing just a few weeks is probably a good thing.
The defensive lineman might not even have to go on injured reserve. If placed on IR, Harmon would be required to miss at least four games.
In four games this season, Harmon has 12 combined tackles, including one tackle for loss. He has also registered two quarterback hits, 1.5 sacks and one forced fumble. The forced fumble came late in the fourth quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals. Harmon forced a fumble against Joe Burrow, which essentially secured the Week 3 victory for Pittsburgh.
Steelers’ Derrick Harmon to Miss a Few Weeks: Report
NFL fans usually jump to the worst conclusions when they see boots or casts on body parts. Harmon also needed a cart to leave the sideline Thursday night against the Browns. That was another bad sign.
But as NFL fans learned with Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams in Week 2, the cart isn’t always a sign that it’s a season-ending injury. That’s the case with Harmon as well.
If Harmon misses three games, then he will, ironically, be set to return against the Browns. Cleveland will visit Pittsburgh in about a month’s time on Sunday, November 1.
In the meantime, the Steelers will face the Indianapolis Colts and Tampa Bay Buccaneers over the next two weeks. Then, the Steelers will travel to Paris, France to square off versus the New Orleans Saints.
The Steelers won’t have a bye the following week when they return from Europe. Interestingly, their bye is the Sunday after the Browns rematch.
So, whether or not Harmon goes on IR comes down to the rather standard question. If the Steelers see him returning before the bye week, then the defensive lineman shouldn’t go on IR.
Should the Steelers expect Harmon to need at least four weeks, he will actually get five while on IR. That’s because after the next four games, the Steelers will have an additional week off with the bye.
Pittsburgh’s Defense Without Harmon
Harmon has been more visible in the Steelers pass rush early this season. But without him, the immediate concern is about the team’s run defense.
During Harmon’s rookie season, Pittsburgh allowed about 91 rushing yards per game when the defensive lineman played. But without Harmon in the lineup during 2025, the Steelers yielded 165.6 rushing yards per contest.
The Steelers run defense hasn’t been very stout even with Harmon early this season. Pittsburgh has yielded an average of 112.75 rushing yards per week through four games. In the first four games, opponents ran for at least 83 rushing yards versus Pittsburgh each week.
Without Harmon for much of Thursday night, the Browns had 112 rushing yards — right on the average.
But it’s still worrisome that the run defense could get a lot worse without Harmon for perhaps the next month. The biggest test on the ground over the next stretch of games is also coming immediately — Jonathan Taylor and the Colts next Sunday.
Last season, the Steelers held Indianapolis to 55 rushing yards in their matchup. However, Harmon played in that game.
Steelers Avoid Worst-Case Injury Scenario With Derrick Harmon: Report