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It’s been a horrific offseason for Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Stephon Tuitt, who lost his younger brother in a tragic hit-and-run accident outside Atlanta in June. Tuitt was excused from mandatory minicamp in the wake of the tragedy and has not practiced with the team during training camp, resulting in ongoing speculation about what exactly is keeping him off the field.
In the weeks since, there have been hints that Tuitt is dealing with a physical injury. A week ago, linemate Cameron Heyward said that Tuitt was in the process of “working his way back,” and that head coach Mike Tomlin and the team’s head athletic trainer would have more information about his situation in the weeks ahead.
On Friday, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that there is a physical ailment involved.
“Tuitt has been held out of practice mostly because he is dealing with an undisclosed injury that could continue to bother him for a while,” wrote Dulac in his column.
Meanwhile, Coach Tomlin has not confirmed that Tuitt is injured, citing league policy that injuries don’t need to be reported during preseason. Nor has Tomlin provided any indication when Tuitt might return.
But even if Tuitt returns to practice next week, one wonders if he can ready himself in time for the regular season opener at Buffalo on Sept. 12.
On Aug. 19, defensive coordinator Keith Butler was asked if he thought Tuitt would be available for the Buffalo game.
“Boy, I hope so. I really hope so,” he said, per Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. But he admitted the Steelers don’t want to rush him back either. “We don’t want him to go out there and get hurt and we lose him for another four weeks or something like that. We want to make sure he’s in shape and ready to play when we play our first ballgame,” he concluded.
Chris Wormley is Stephon Tuitt’s Backup
If it turns out that Tuitt isn’t ready for the start of the regular season, Keith Butler & Co. will turn to Chris Wormley, who was acquired in a trade with the Baltimore Ravens in March 2020. Wormley had minimal impact in his first year with the team (eight tackles and one sack), but the Steelers did re-sign him during the offseason and Tomlin has praised his work in training camp.
After Wormley, the Steelers have a handful of developmental prospects, including Isaiah Buggs, Carlos Davis and Henry Mondeaux, all of whom saw some—albeit limited—playing time in 2020. The team also has rookie fifth-round pick Isaiahh Loudermilk, who was selected after the Steelers traded a 2022 fourth-round pick to the Miami Dolphins for the No. 156 overall selection in this year’s draft.
Stefen Wisniewski Retires
In other news, on Thursday longtime NFL offensive lineman Stefen Wisniewski retired from the NFL to become a pastor.
Wisniewski starred at Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh before playing his college football at Penn State. He was drafted in the second round of the 2011 NFL Draft by the Oakland Raiders, where he played for four seasons. After one year with the Jacksonville Jaguars, he spent three seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he won a Super Bowl ring. His last two stops in the NFL came with the Kansas City Chiefs and the Steelers. He won a second Super Bowl ring with the Chiefs in 2019.
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