After missing last week's narrow victory over the Green Bay Packers, Pittsburgh Steelers rookie wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster appears to be on pace to start Monday night when they take on the Cincinnati Bengals.

Per ProFootballTalk's Josh Alper, the rising star out of USC returned to practice on Thursday and is expected to play in Week 13. He has been nursing a hamstring injury that hadn't kept him off the field until last Sunday night.

The Steelers eased Smith-Schuster into the offense during the first few weeks of the season, but since Week 8, he has been the primary option in the passing game behind Antonio Brown. Smith-Schuster has benefitted greatly from Brown's prowess as teams often single cover him while using a safety to help maintain Brown, who is widely considered as a top-two WR in the NFL alongside the Atlanta Falcons' Julio Jones.

Smith-Schuster broke out in that Week 8 matchup against the Detroit Lions, hauling in seven passes for a ridiculous 193 yards, including a franchise-record 97-yard catch to the house.

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Ben Roethlisberger talked about Smith-Schuster's increased role in the offense with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette earlier this week.

“When you trust someone to do what they’re supposed to do, you can anticipate throws.

“You trust that they’re going to be where they’re supposed to be. And trust is a huge thing when it comes to a quarterback and wide receiver. I have to trust he’s going to be where he’s supposed to be, not second guessing, not not knowing what he’s doing. And to me that’s one of the biggest reasons he’s having success, is that he’s where he’s supposed to be and I trust him.”

The injury news was less positive defensively for the Steelers. Both safety Mike Mitchell and linebacker Ryan Shazier sat out the Thursday practice session in Pittsburgh.