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Preseason is a time for NFL teams to sort out their position battles, to implement strategies and try out new lineup combinations to see what works and what doesn't. However teams run the risk of injuring their players in preseason action, which, relative to the regular season, pales in importance, and the Pittsburgh Steelers learned their lesson the hard way on Friday night.
Despite taking home a 27-17 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Steelers will be feeling like they lost. A total of four players had to leave the preseason tilt early due to injury, including 22-year old defensive tackle Keeanu Benton, per Noah Strackbein of The News&Observer.
The good news is that head coach Mike Tomlin did not mention whether or not the team was evaluating Benton's ankle after the game, so that could imply that the injury he suffered wasn't that severe. The Steelers will be missing Benton's contributions should he need to miss some time, as he was a standout performer for the team against the Buccaneers, making a slew of impressive plays on the defensive end.
However, the other three players — Chappelle Russell, Nick Kwiatkowski, and Duke Dawson — seem to have suffered serious enough injuries to the point of requiring post-game evaluation.
Russell, a 26-year old linebacker, suffered a knock to his knee. This comes as an unfortunate development to his bid to make the Steelers' opening night roster. Nevertheless, it seems like Russell has banked enough goodwill within the organization for him to remain in the mix in the Steelers' linebacker picture, as he has reportedly “turned some heads” during training camp.
Meanwhile, another player who's looking to crack the Steelers' linebacker rotation, Nick Kwiatkowski, suffered an injury to his shoulder. Originally hailing from the city of Pittsburgh, Kwiatkowski will want to latch on to a dream come true to play for the beloved NFL franchise residing in his hometown.
The most bleak injury of the night, however, goes to Duke Dawson. Dawson reportedly appears to have suffered a “serious” knee injury not too long after suffering a Torn ACL earlier in his career. The 27-year old cornerback buckled his knee, which almost always is a telltale sign of alarming damage to one's ligament.
