Three weeks out from the opener, a corner walks back in
Pittsburgh pulled Jalen Ramsey off the physically unable to perform list on Monday. The 31-year-old is practicing again. The knee he hurt back at minicamp never required surgery, which is why nobody in the building ever sounded especially worried.
Max Iheanachor got cleared the same afternoon. The rookie offensive lineman, taken in the first round, had not practiced since August 6 because of neck and shoulder injuries. Two names off the shelf on one Monday.
Try it for $0.99.
The trade Pittsburgh is still waiting to win
Ramsey is in Pennsylvania because the Steelers went and got him. Last summer they sent safety Minkah Fitzpatrick to Miami to bring him north. Trading away a defensive cornerstone for a veteran corner on the wrong side of 30 was not a quiet move.
Year one came back fine rather than thrilling. 88 tackles, three sacks, one interception across 17 games. Useful. Nothing close to what Ramsey put on tape in Jacksonville or Los Angeles.
622 tackles, 25 picks, eight Pro Bowls
The fifth pick in 2016 has now played 152 regular-season games and started 151 of them, across the Jaguars, Rams, Dolphins and Steelers. Eight Pro Bowl nods in ten years.
Corners of his generation rarely last this long at that level. But 31 is 31, and the position does not negotiate.
The calendar
Pittsburgh close the preseason Thursday night in Buffalo. The opener is September 13 at home against Atlanta. Roughly three weeks for Ramsey to find game speed.
Discover the rest of the NFL news on our mathodds site and app!
in your pocket.
Real-time notifications & alerts
Leave a Reply