Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster notably inked a one-year free agent contract to return to the “Steel City” this past offseason. Unfortunately for both parties, things aren't off to the best start as the team is a disappointing 1-2 on the year.
To make matters worse, Smith-Schuster left their Week 3 outing against the rival Cincinnati Bengals due to a rib injury.
According to a recent report from Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Smith-Schuster has been diagnosed with bruised ribs. As a result, the veteran pass catcher is being considered “day-to-day” while already undergoing “all tests” and “receiving negative test results.”
#Steelers WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, who left Sunday’s game with a rib injury, was diagnosed with bruised ribs, sources say. He’s considered day-to-day after undergoing all tests and receiving negative results (negative is good).
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 27, 2021
In addition to JuJu Smith-Schuster being forced to the sideline, the Steelers have also been without another dynamic wideout in Diontae Johnson, who is currently nursing a nagging knee injury of his own. Johnson missed the team's eventual Week 3 loss to the Bengals as his counterpart in Smith-Schuster was forced out of the contest prematurely.
With the tandem nowhere to be found for aging quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who is becoming less and less mobile in the pocket as the weeks go on, the majority of the workload in the passing attack has been placed on Steelers wideouts Chase Claypool and James Washington. Of course, Pittsburgh is also navigating through treacherous waters with rookie running back Najee Harris flanking “Big Ben.”
After a win over the now 2-1 Buffalo Bills back in Week 1, the Steelers have since come up short against both the surging Las Vegas Raiders and Bengals.
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