By Matt Papiernik, @Matt_Papiernik on Twitter
SteelerNation.com
This morning ESPN staff writer Brooke Pryor spoke with Pittsburgh Steelers starting center Maurkice Pouncey. Pouncey revealed that he missed the final regular season game for the Steelers in 2019 vs. the Baltimore Ravens due to tearing his meniscus the week prior vs. the New York Jets.
Instead of electing for surgery to repair his meniscus, Pouncey elected for rehab during the off-season. Pouncey's comments are below.
"I think it was a smarter decision for me to just to rehab it throughout the off-season... I had a lot of time to work and get myself strong in that area. I got lucky with it not catching and becoming a lingering issue."
The good news is, it appears Pouncey has rehabbed his knee successfully throughout the off-season and hasn't had any setbacks to this point.
The bad news is, Pouncey is in the back half of his career, and is coming off a season in which he missed the most games since 2013. Being a player on the wrong side of 30, there is always additional risk anytime an injury pops up, especially a lower body injury.
Pouncey has always been known to be in great shape, and is one of the hardest working offensive lineman in the league, so if there is anyone that can successfully recover from a torn meniscus this late in his career, it is him.
There isn't a huge cause for concern with Pouncey since the injury happened over 8 months ago, but it is always something to think about with linemen who have entered their 30s.
If Pouncey does have to miss some time during the season, the Steelers have a new face to be his backup this year in Stefen Wisniewski who they signed this off-season. Wisniewski is capable of playing either center or guard, and was a key part of the Kansas City Chief's offensive line during their Super Bowl run.
Let us know what you think below about Pouncey's late season injury and his decision to choose rehab over surgery! Comment below!
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