The Steelers made a bunch of roster moves yesterday and coach Mike Tomlin said they are ready to move on to preparations for the Baltimore Ravens this Sunday.
Former starting cornerback Darius Slay was released outright yesterday and newly-acquired cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. was signed to the 53-man roster after one game as an “elevated” player from the practice squad. Former Penn State defensive back Daequan Hardy was signed to the practice squad.
35-year-old wide receiver Adam Theilen was claimed off waivers from Minnesota. He’d requested his release from the Vikings so he could finish his career with a playoff-contending team.
After the Bills’ ground game shredded their defense last Sunday, the Steelers have to face the Ravens’ “King Henry”, the imposing Derrick Henry, and for the second week in a row, run-stuffing defensive lineman Derrick Harmon will miss the game with a knee injury. Harmon was the only player Tomlin ruled out for this week, saying the other injured Steelers are all “questionable.”
Tomlin says the Steelers are concentrating more on playing the Ravens than they are on what went wrong against the Bills.
Tomlin says the video of the loss to the Bills was painful but necessary to watch, and now it’s time to move on.
The coach says the focus now needs to be on the Ravens, and the battle for first place in the AFC North.
As for the chants from Steelers fans calling for him to be fired, Tomlin had a surprising response.
Aaron Rodgers said after Sunday’s game that he anticipates being able to take snaps under center rather than just working out of the shotgun this Sunday, and he also expects to be able to do handoffs with his left hand instead of exclusively with his right, as he did against the Bills. Tomlin said he doesn’t think Rodgers will have any limitations this week. He also said linebacker Patrick Queen and cornerback James Pierre will be questionable to practice, at least for today.
