The Pittsburgh Steelers are putting their finishing touches on their preparations for their Week 6 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. After picking up a 34-22 victory over the Indianapolis Colts last weekend, the Steelers are well-positioned to pick up their second straight win and start generating some positive momentum.
Of course, there are some notable injury concerns heading into this game, but as long as Pittsburgh plays its brand of football, it should be able to come out on top against an equally injured Tampa Bay team. Ahead of this game, though, the Steelers received a pair of unexpected injury updates on wide receiver DK Metcalf and tight end Pat Freiermuth.
Steelers Get Injury Updates on DK Metcalf and Pat Freiermuth
Pittsburgh spent much of its offseason attempting to get Aaron Rodgers more help on offense, but this unit has been operating at less than full health for much of the year now. Both Michael Pittman Jr. and Rico Dowdle have missed several games with injuries, and Roman Wilson is now out for Week 6 because of a finger injury.
As a result, it was pretty concerning to see Metcalf pop up on the injury report because of an illness. Initially, he was listed as questionable for this game because of this ailment, but in a surprise twist, he ended up getting removed from the injury report entirely on Saturday, indicating that he is good to go for this game.
The problem is that Pittsburgh still could lose another offensive playmaker for this game. That would be Freiermuth, who has suddenly popped up on the injury report with a calf injury. He has been listed as questionable for this game, and considering how he was a late addition to the injury report, it seems like his status is truly up in the air.
Steelers have added TE Pat Freiermuth (calf) to the injury report and he is now questionable for Sunday’s game against Tampa Bay,” Adam Schefter of ESPN shared in a post on X. Additionally, WR DK Metcalf (illness) has been removed from the injury report and will not have an injury designation for Sunday’s game.
Steelers Hoping Pat Freiermuth Can Play in Week 6
Freiermuth isn’t necessarily the best player on the Steelers’ roster, but he is a trusted target for Rodgers, particularly in the red zone, as he already has four touchdowns on the season. Knowing for sure that Metcalf will be able to play is big, but with several other guys already out, Pittsburgh could use Freiermuth on the field, too.
If Freiermuth can’t play, that means Darnell Washington will get more work on offense, with Robert Tonyan also potentially seeing an uptick in snaps. A more concrete update on Freiermuth’s status should emerge soon, but a final determination on whether or not he is playing will be made 90 minutes before the team’s 1 p.m. kickoff.
Steelers Receive Unexpected DK Metcalf, Pat Freiermuth Injury News