The Steelers held practice on Wednesday at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, before hitting the road to take on the Minnesota Vikings on Thursday Night Football.
Cornerback Joe Haden missed practice again with his foot injury and has been ruled out for the game. Guard B.J. Finney, who injured his back against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday, also didn't practice and was ruled out.
In addition, linebacker Robert Spillane (knee) and defensive end Isaiah Buggs (ankle) didn't practice and also have been ruled out.
It will be another week of next man up for the black and gold with the injuries.
Last week against the Ravens cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon started at Haden's left cornerback spot. He finished the game with five tackles and a pass defensed. After being inactive for eight of the first nine games, Witherspoon has played in the last three games. Whether he will get the call on Thursday to start or not has yet to be determined.
"This kid is a big, tall, lanky kid that is a corner," said defensive coordinator Keith Butler. "Anybody that's got that height and can play corner in this league, it's always a good advantage. A lot of people overlook him and stuff like that. The good thing about trying to run by a big, tall kid is he's long; it's hard to throw over him. He got in position; he made the play on that deep throw. He's going to continue to learn as a young fellow. Smart kid."
When Finney left the Ravens game injured, it was the versatile John Leglue who stepped in and earned praise. It also isn't known yet what his role will be on Thursday, especially with offensive lineman Joe Haeg still on the Reserve/COVID-19 List.
"Great credit to him. Jumped in there ready to go," said offensive coordinator Matt Canada of Leglue. "You can't warm up to those guys. He came in and gave us a little bit of energy. Really came in excited to play, which you should be. The way we were doing all this back in camp, you guys were asking about him when we had all the linemen out. It seemed like every day somebody was out. You asked how it was going and I told you it was great because we were getting experience. That would be a great example of it's never great when a guy's out, but you have to make the most of that opportunity. He was a guy that, one day, finished practice at center. He's a tackle. He just played at guard. His versatility, his ability to understand what we're doing was really impressive. And obviously, him going in and playing how he played—he had some good and he had some bad—but being able to do it and keep us moving and keep us functioning is a huge, huge credit."
The full injury report is below.
Pittsburgh Steelers Participation/Injury Report, Week 14
Game Status
CB Joe Haden (Foot) - Out
LB Robert Spillane (Knee) - Out
OL B.J. Finney (Back) - Out
DE Isaiah Buggs (Ankle) - Out
Wednesday, December 8
QB Ben Roethlisberger (Pectoral/ Rt. Shoulder) - Full
WR Chase Claypool (Toe) - Full
CB Joe Haden (Foot) - DNP
LB Robert Spillane (Knee) - DNP
OL Trai Turner (Coaches Decision) - Full
OL B.J. Finney (Back) - DNP
DE Isaiah Buggs (Ankle) - DNP
DT Cameron Heyward (Coaches Decision) - Full
Tuesday, December 7
QB Ben Roethlisberger (Pectoral/ Rt. Shoulder) - Full
WR Chase Claypool (Toe) - Full
CB Joe Haden (Foot) - DNP
LB Robert Spillane (Knee) - DNP
OL Trai Turner (Coaches Decision) - Full
OL B.J. Finney (Back) - DNP
DE Isaiah Buggs (Ankle) - DNP
DT Cameron Heyward (Coaches Decision) - Full
Monday, December 6
QB Ben Roethlisberger (Pectoral/ Rt. Shoulder) - DNP
WR Chase Claypool (Toe) - DNP
CB Joe Haden (Foot) - DNP
LB Robert Spillane (Knee) - DNP
OL Trai Turner (Coaches Decision) - DNP
OL B.J. Finney (Back) - DNP
DE Isaiah Buggs (Ankle) - DNP
DT Cameron Heyward (Coaches Decision) - DNP
*Estimation, the Steelers did not practice.
Minnesota Vikings Participation/Injury Report, Week 14
Game Status
WR Adam Thielen (Ankle) - Out
T Christian Darrisaw (Ankle) - Out
RB Dalvin Cook (Shoulder) - Questionable
LB Blake Lynch (Hip) - Questionable
S Camryn Bynum (Ankle) - Questionable
Wednesday, December 8
RB Dalvin Cook (Shoulder) - Limited
WR Adam Thielen (Ankle) - DNP
LB Blake Lynch (Hip) - Limited
T Christian Darrisaw (Ankle) - DNP
LB Anthony Barr (Knee/Hamstring) - Full
LB Ryan Connelly (Quadriceps) - Full
S Camryn Bynum (Ankle) - Full
LB Eric Kendricks (Biceps) - Full
CB Mackensie Alexander (Ribs) Full
CB Bashaud Breeland (Groin) - Full
CB Patrick Peterson (NIR) - Full
*Estimation, the Vikings did not practice.
Tuesday, December 7
RB Dalvin Cook (Shoulder) - Limited
WR Adam Thielen (Ankle) - DNP
LB Blake Lynch (Hip) - Limited
T Christian Darrisaw (Ankle) - DNP
LB Anthony Barr (Knee/Hamstring) - Full
LB Ryan Connelly (Quadriceps) - Full
S Camryn Bynum (Ankle) - Limited
LB Eric Kendricks (Biceps) - Full
CB Mackensie Alexander (Ribs) Full
CB Bashaud Breeland (Groin) - Full
CB Patrick Peterson (NIR) - Full
Monday, December 6
RB Dalvin Cook (Shoulder) - DNP
WR Adam Thielen (Ankle) - DNP
LB Blake Lynch (Hip) - DNP
T Christian Darrisaw (Ankle) - DNP
LB Anthony Barr (Knee/Hamstring) - Limited
LB Ryan Connelly (Quadriceps) - Limited
S Camryn Bynum (Ankle) - Limited
LB Eric Kendricks (Biceps) - Limited
CB Mackensie Alexander (Ribs) Full
CB Bashaud Breeland (Groin) - Full
*Estimation, the Vikings did not practice.
