The Steelers are a tale of two sides of the ball coming into Week 9. While the defense has nobody on the injury report, the offense is looking pretty thin at running back and the interior of the offensive line. Yes, they are fine with what they have when it comes to starters. But another in-game injury could be costly. With that said, here is the status report and the possibilities for the Steelers inactive list against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday.
Game Status
Out:
RB Benny Snell Jr. (knee)
G Ramon Foster (concussion)
Doubtful:
RB James Conner (shoulder)
Questionable:
FB Roosevelt Nix (knee)
Here are the possibilities to end up inactive for Week 9:
Definitely:
RB Benny Snell Jr.- similar to Jaylen Samuels a few weeks ago, Snell had a minor procedure on his meniscus and is expected to miss several games.
G Ramon Foster- leaving Monday nights game and entering the concussion protocol, Foster was going to be a longshot to play when he wasn’t able to participate at all on Wednesday.
Most Likely:
RB James Conner- since the NFL changed game status designations to exclude “probable,” the Steelers have never had a player listed as doubtful be active for the game. It looks like Conner will likely sit this one out.
QB Paxton Lynch- there is no need for a third quarterback to dress, and right now Lynch should be thankful he is pulling an active-roster salary and not a practice-squad salary.
CB Justin Layne- with every member of the defense healthy, somebody is going to have to sit. Lane should just be grateful for the games that he’s played so far in 2019
DL L.T. Walton- I wasn’t sure if it would be Buggs or Walton who got the helmet against the Dolphins. Since it was Buggs, I’m assuming Walton will stay on this list until there is an injury.
Possibly:
FB Roosevelt Nix- he had just one game back and was nicely utilized in the running game in Week 8. Not even being on the injury report until Friday when limited by his knee, Nix is questionable to play. Hopefully he can recover quickly and get back on the field.
TE Zach Gentry- I have no idea what the Steelers are doing here. Sometimes Gentry is active when I don’t expect it, and inactive when it seems like they could use another tight end. With zero targets on the season, I think he stays inactive until he’s definitely needed.
WR Donte Moncrief- I feel he needs to be a possibility simply because no wide receivers are injured. If I’m still discussing him on this list next week, it will be quite disappointing as it would mean the Steelers will not get a third round compensatory draft pick in 2020.
Unlikely:
OLB Anthony Chickillo- missing practice Wednesday until he was reinstated from the commissioners Reserve/Exempt List, I believe Chickillo will be suiting up on Sunday.
DT Isaiah Buggs- it’s not beyond the realm of possibility to swap out Walton for Buggs, I just don’t have any reason to believe it until I see it.
Projected Inactive List:
- Benny Snell Jr
- Ramon Foster
- James Conner
- Paxton Lynch
- L.T. Walton
- Justin Layne
- Zach Gentry
Unfortunately, James Conner ends up on the list and will not play on Sunday. Other than him, the only other possibility would be if Nix cannot go then Gentry probably gets a helmet. If the Steelers feel the need to promote a running back from the practice squad late on Saturday, one of these players could be released if not Donte Moncrief.
As always, feel free to list your projected inactives in the comments below.