Predicting which Pittsburgh Steelers will sit out Week 2 of the preseason against Kansas City

With no injury report in the preseason, the best gauge for predicting which Steelers will sit out Week 2 of the preseason is a combination of participation in the open practices at training camp and Mike Tomlin’s remarks throughout the week. While technically nobody has been ruled out, there are bound to be several players who do not dress against the Chiefs.

Here are the possibilities of players who might get the night off against Kansas City:

Definitely:

QB Ben Roethlisberger- Coach Tomlin technically didn’t rule Roethlisberger out for this week. But when the order of play was stated for quarterbacks, Roethlisberger was not on the list.

OLB Olasunkanmi Adeniyi- With news breaking Friday morning of Ola recovering from surgery, it’s safe to say he will not be playing on Saturday. With no official announcement from the Steelers at the time this article was constructed, the information of a 2-4 week recovery has yet to be corroborated.

Most Likely:

C Maurkice Pouncey- Practicing for the first time in almost two weeks this past Thursday, there isn’t any rush to get Pouncey back on the field before Ben Roethlisberger is read to take the snaps.

LB Vince Williams- Also coming back to practice Thursday after a two week hiatus, Williams is only in danger of losing snaps but not a roster spot at this point. Another week until he plays seems to be the likely route.

CB Joe Haden- Although a regular return to practice seems close, the Steelers have a number of corners they need to get a look at this week. Haden most likely gets ready to suit up Week 3 in Tennessee.

G David DeCastro- Reports were inconclusive if DeCastro practiced one day this week or not. Regardless, he sat out at least two practices and will probably be held out again on Saturday night.

TE Christian Scotland-Williamson- The only player injured in the Steelers first preseason game, “Scotty” doesn’t look like he’ll be able to go.

Possibly:

S Sean Davis- While he did practice this week, Davis has missed a lot of time and could be given another week to get game ready. Another possibility is he could see limited action early and then get the rest of the night off.

LB T.J. Watt- In order to not sound like a broken record, read the explanation for Sean Davis but substitute the name “T.J. Watt.”

TE Zach Gentry- Although he didn’t practice this week, you never want to rule out a rookie who is fighting to make the team. But if I had to guess, I’d say he’s out.

LB Devin Bush- He did miss at least one practice this week, but Bush appears to be fine. Most rookies would definitely play in this situation, but Bush is not a typical rookie and precautions could be taken.

OLB Sutton Smith- He’s in, he’s out. He’s up, he’s down. Who knows what will happen with Smith?

Unlikely:

Any player with less than one year of experience will most likely take the field against the Chiefs. Players making their way back such as Diontae Johnson , Donte Moncrief , and Artie Burns should be in action Saturday night.

CAny player with less than one year of experience will most likely take the field against the unless they were drafted in the first three rounds. All other young players are in danger of being waived/injured if they are unable to play.

Final Thoughts:

Since Mike Tomlin said more of the starters will see action is Week 2, there should be very few players who are not dressed for reasons other than injury. It is possible that a few other veterans such as Cameron Heyward and Ramon Foster could sit out, but at this point it’s hard to make that distinction.

Who do you think will sit out Saturday? Was there someone missing from the list? Feel free to leave a comment with your list of players we won’t see this week.