Several Steelers Rookies Fail To Practice Wednesday, Could Miss Upcoming Preseason Game
For Friday’s preseason game, the Pittsburgh Steelers could be without three rookies the team drafted in April. Per The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo, OG Gennings Dunker and OT Max Iheanachor did not practice during Wednesday’s padded session. Fellow rookie cornerback Daylen Everette also did not fully dress, per DeFabo.
DeFabo noted that Dunker initially took the field before walking into the facility with a trainer. He returned without his pads on. Iheanachor did not have pads on during practice, either.
Iheanachor has missed over a week with a neck/shoulder injury and is extremely unlikely to play Friday against the New York Jets.
Dunker’s injury is more recent. Late in Sunday’s practice, we spotted Dunker being checked out by head trainer Gabe Amponsah, who was holding out his arms and testing Dunker’s strength. Dunker did not finish the final few reps of practice although he did participate in a helmet-less walkthrough afterward. Ryan McCollum finished the session as second-team right guard.
Monday’s final camp practice was rained out, preventing us from further examing Dunker’s status. Failing to practice 48 hours before kickoff is a discouraging sign, but without an official injury report, it’s hard to know if Dunker will truly miss the Jets game.
Everette’s situation is less clear. We did not note an injury during Sunday’s final session, but it’s clear Everette is dealing with some sort of ailment that threatens his availability for Friday night.
Dunker and Everette played well in their NFL debuts. Dunker logged 30 snaps at right guard while Everette picked up 36 snaps at cornerback plus another nine on special teams. Both aren’t expected to have significant roles to begin the season, but that projection made their preseason reps all the more valuable to evaluate.
The Steelers and Jets kick off Friday at 7 PM/EST. Pittsburgh will have a shorter turnaround before its exhibition finale the following Thursday on the road against the Buffalo Bills.
