Steelers Suffer A Magnitude Of Injuries In A Failure Of A Performance Against The 49ers

The Pittsburgh Steelers 2023 season did not start as most fans had hoped. They lost their Week 1 game in their first home season opener since 2014 by a score of 30-7 against the San Francisco 49ers. As if the devastating loss was not enough, the team suffered many injuries to very significant players that will likely leave their Week 2 status up in the air as the Steelers prepare to play the Cleveland Browns on Monday Night Football. 

Steelers Suffer Many Large Injuries In Season Opener

Those injured in the Steelers embarrassing Week 1 loss include Cameron Heyward, Demarvin Leal, Diontae Johnson and Pat Freiermuth. That's three very important starting players and a key rotational player along the defensive line. 

Heyward originally went down in the second quarter with a groin injury, went to the locker room for testing, and came back in the game for one play to try and see how he was feeling before exiting the game again. This time for good, as he was ruled out for the remainder of Week 1. 

In his postgame press conference, the Steelers star edge rusher, TJ Watt spoke about what it was like to lose a player and leader like Heyward for the majority of the game. Heyward is a captain on the team and key part of the defense, and losing him definitely cost the unit despite them not looking the best even when he was in the game. However, most of that was due to the offense underperforming and not being able to put the defense in a good situation. 

"I mean he's the captain. He's the captain for a reason. He's been a guy that's been able to make plays and be a spark for our defense for a long time. But like I said earlier, the standard is the standard no matter who is in there. We were all at training camp together getting work in with different groups so we're all familiar with each other and if one guy goes down, no matter who it is. A guy like Cam [Heyward], it might take more than one guy to fill that role but we need to find a way to stop the bleeding and we weren't able to do that today."

Losing Heyward is catastrophic for this defense for any amount of time. Not just because of his ability on the field, but also because of his ability to lead and experience within this defense. The severity of his groin injury has not yet been discussed, but hopefully he will be able to be on the field for the Steelers in Week 2 against the Browns. 

Johnson had three receptions for 48 yards before being injured ended up suffering what looked to be a serious hamstring injury. This can be detrimental to the Steelers and Kenny Pickett as he could lost one of his top targets for a long time. Offseason reports consistently included how the chemistry between Pickett and Johnson has grown over the offseason, and losing Johnson could be devastating if he misses an extensive amount of time. 

Johnson's injury came on the end of a long catch and run for a first, where he grabbed the back of his leg as soon as he went down insinuating it was a hamstring injury immediately. He went to the locker room afterwards for testing, and was ruled out for the remainder of the game shortly after. We will see how long he is held out of practice and if he will be available for Week 2. 

Another one of Pickett's top targets, Freiermuth, also suffered an injury during the game. It is listed as a chest injury and no further details have been given. It can be assumed he suffered this injury in the end zone while trying to make a catch between two defenders which resulted in an incompletion. Thankfully, the Steelers have a reliable tight end room with both Connor Heyward and Darnell Washington sitting behind him. Hopefully Freiermuth is okay and the injury is not severe. 

Leal also suffered an injury, as he apparently suffered an arm ailment. He saw more playing time in the game after Heyward exited the contest with a groin injury. He will be in concussion protocol for most of this next week of practice. If both Leal and Heyward cannot make a quick recovery, the defensive line depth will be quite slim. On top of it all, starting right tackle, Chukwuma Okorafor may be entering the concussion protocol, per Head Coach, Mike Tomlin's postgame press conference.

Hopefully all of these players will be available to bounce back quickly as the Steelers try to get back on the right foot as they prepare to face the Browns in Week 2.