The Pittsburgh Steelers‘ loss to the Green Bay Packers in Week 8 was damaging in its own right, but making matters even worse, the team suffered several injuries along the way. On Friday, the team announced that both safety DeShon Elliott and defensive tackle Daniel Ekuale were headed to injured reserve thanks to the injuries they suffered in this game.
Elliott was forced out of the Steelers’ loss to the Packers with a knee injury, and it could force him to miss the rest of the season. Ekuale’s season is already confirmed to be over, as it was revealed that he suffered a torn ACL against Green Bay. With both guys facing lengthy absences, the team opted to place them on injured reserve, opening up a pair of roster spots in the process.
“We have placed S DeShon Elliott and DT Daniel Ekuale on the Reserve/Injured List,” the team announced in a post on X.
Now that Elliott’s season potentially over, Pittsburgh moved quickly to acquire Kyle Dugger in a trade with the New England Patriots, reuniting him with his former Pats teammate, Jabrill Peppers. The hope is that Elliott can return this year, but in the event he can’t, Dugger will be tasked with helping replace him moving forward.
These injuries aren’t exactly ideal for the Steelers, because they have a difficult Week 9 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts on their hands. With a 7-1 record, the Colts have been the best team in the NFL this season, which makes this a particularly daunting challenge for Pittsburgh. Kickoff for this contest is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon.
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