It looks like the Steelers may be even more short handed for Sunday in Cincy, as strong safety Tyrone Carter has a severely bruised left thigh. The injury took place on the huge hit that he made on Bears tight end Greg Olsen.
The options for the safety spot include Ryan Mundy, or possibly one of the two veteran cornerbacks, Deshea Townsend and Keiwan Ratliff, who have practiced at safety. It’s going to be a scramble it looks like till Troy Polamalu gets back.
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DrGeorge
September 22, 2009 at 2:08 pm
Tyrone Carter is a ferocious hitter and competitor, and every athlete is trained to play with pain. But a true injury is more than pain; it is physically limiting. As Carter himself admitted, he did the team a disservice by under-estimating the extent of his injury at the time; but that is a fine line to walk in the heat of a game. I don’t fault him for that. One of Tomlin’s virtues as a coach is choosing players for their versatility. Mundy, Townsend,and Ratliff all have the ability to play SS if needed, and all three are getting a crash course in the nuances of the position this week. None of the three are as good as Carter if he is healthy; but Carter isn’t even 90% healthy. I hope Tomlin rests Carter, and allows the backups to earn their keep at Cincy.
mark
September 22, 2009 at 2:21 pm
I agree. A limited Carter is not going to help against the Bengals. Personally, I would like to see Townsend there. He understands the secondary, has always been a smart player and really gives the team experience over Mundy. I am however, interested in what Mundy might bring to the table. Unfortunately, the Bengals might not be the team to test the waters with. They have the weapons to really exploit any secondary lapses. If the pass rush can come through, the secondary is safer.I fully expect Palmer to try the deep pass as soon as he gets Gay alone or the SS out of position. The Bears did not try the deep pass but Palmer will!
DrGeorge
September 24, 2009 at 9:33 am
Absolutely, Mark. Palmer will test whoever is in the SS position, knowing none of the backups can match Polamalu’s range and his uncanny anticipation. Palmer loves to go deep, and unless our defense applies more pressure than they have to date, he will have the time to do it. See Gene Collins’ article on the lack of defensive production in today’s Post-Gazette. I’m a big fan of D. Townsend too, but he and all the backups are very short compared with the ever-larger NFL receivers.