EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Four Pittsburgh Steelers defensive players left Sunday’s season-opening victory at the New York Jets because of an injury, and three did not return.
“We absorbed some attrition in-game,” Tomlin said after a 34-32 comeback win. “Like always.”
Tomlin did not expand on whether the attrition is expected to extend into future games, including next Sunday’s home opener against the Seattle Seahawks.
Safety DeShon Elliott, cornerback Joey Porter and linebacker Malik Harrison did not finish the game because of injury. Elliott suffered a knee injury during the second quarter, Porter a hamstring injury during the third quarter and Harrison a knee ailment in the fourth quarter.
Elliott’s injury had the initial appearance of being perhaps the most significant, but after the game he was in the locker room in no obvious pain or hindrance.
Porter was, too. Tomlin described Porter’s issue as that his “hamstring got tight, and we shut him down so it didn’t get any worse than it was.”
Defensive captain Cameron Heyward at one point was in pain after getting poked in the eye and was attended to for several moments on the field by training personnel. But he returned to the game after missing just one snap, and after the game had no visible signs of trauma in an eye.
