Steelers Have A Painful Day 3 As A Couple Of Key Injuries Occur In Rain Soaked Practice

The Pittsburgh Steelers have completed Day 3 of training camp at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PA. Injuries have been the big story this week around the NFL with Jalen Ramsey losing half a season or more with a meniscus tear for the Miami Dolphins. Joe Burrow from the Cincinnati Bengals has a calf injury that will limit him for several weeks, avoiding the dreaded news that it might be a torn Achilles injury.

The Steelers are not immune to injuries and Saturday’s practice resulted in two key injuries to important players on the defense. Ray Fittipaldo who is one of the Steelers beat writers for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette took to social media to report the bad news.

The DeMarvin Leal news is scary because he ended up being taken off the field in a cart during practice. After the Damar Hamlin scare, the NFL community suffered last season, not being able to catch your breath to the point of being carted off the field is not welcome news. Hopefully, it was just a precautionary measure, from one of the best training staffs in the NFL. 

Steelers Eager To Employ Multiple Dimensions Of DeMarvin Leal In 2023

This is the second day in a row that Leal has left a practice. On Friday, he was excused with what were termed heat-related symptoms according to Brian Batko (TwitterX: @BrianBatko) from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Heat-related symptoms on Friday coupled with trouble breathing and being carted off on Saturday will bring on increased scrutiny and perhaps a few days of rest for the second-year player. The former Texas A&M star's versatility to provide depth on both the defensive line and linebacker are a key component in the 2023 roster plan. 

According to SteelerNation's Brandon Wallace, what started as a light rain got progressively worse throughout Saturday's practice. By the end of the session, it had turned into a full-blown monsoon. It is currently unknown if the wet conditions led to the ankle injury that Damontae Kazee suffered on day 3 in Latrobe, PA.

The extent of Kazee's ankle injury is unknown at this point, but it is currently not thought to be too severe. According to Mike Tomlin, as reported by 93.7 The Fan's TwitterX account, it is thought to be a minor injury. It could however keep him out of practice for the next few days. 

Kazee is currently the frontrunner to be joining Minkah Fitzpatrick as one of the starting safeties for the Steelers defense. The defensive unit will likely be without both starters on Sunday against the first-team offense. The defense dominated Saturday's session, so the absence of both starting safeties could level the playing field for the offense on day 4 of training camp. 

What do you think, Steeler Nation? Are you nervous about Leal and Kazee's injuries, or just typical training camp bumps and bruises? Let me hear what you have to say. You can comment below or on my TwitterX: @thebubbasq.