The Pittsburgh
Steelers will be without key starters on their offensive and
defensive lines when they face the Jacksonville
Jaguars on Sunday.
Right tackle Marcus
Gilbert will miss his fourth straight game with a knee injury,
while defensive end Stephon Tuitt has
been ruled out with an elbow injury. Second-year player Matt Feiler will
fill in for Gilbert as he has the past three weeks, while nine-year
veteran Tyson Alualuis
set to replace Tuitt.
Gilbert has only played 13 of the team's last 25 games after
missing just three games the previous two seasons.
It will be Feiler's fifth start of the season and sixth of
his career. He has already started four games this season. The first came in
Week 3 against Tampa Bay, the Steelers' first win of the season, when Gilbert
sat with a hamstring injury.
The Steelers have won all four times Feiler has started at
right tackle, including the last three games. Those wins were part of a
five-game winning streak that has helped the Steelers climb atop the AFC North
after a 1-2-1 start.
The Steelers have averaged 424 yards of total offense the
previous three weeks, including 140 on the ground. James Conner,
third in the league with 771 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns, has rushed for
more than 100 yards in two of the last three weeks. Conner will play Sunday
after leaving last week's win against Carolina with a concussion.
Alualu will get the start against Jacksonville, a city where
he spent his first seven seasons before signing with the Steelers.
The Jaguars shocked the Steelers on the road, 30-9, last
season and did it again in the playoffs, winning 45-42 in Pittsburgh before
falling to New England in the AFC Championship game.
Leonard
Fournette rushed for 290 yards and five touchdowns in those two
games against the Steelers. He missed six games because of injury this season
before returning last week during a loss at Indianapolis. The Jaguars have lost
five of those six and are 3-6, last in the AFC South.
During the win streak, the Steelers' defense has allowed an
average of 269 yards of total offense, including 70 on the ground. In their
first four games, they gave up an average of 418 yards, including 115 rushing.
Tuitt, who has appeared in all nine games, is key part of
Pittsburgh's pass rush, which is tied for second in the league with 31 sacks.
Tuitt has 32 tackles, three sacks, four tackles for loss and 11 quarterback
hits.
Alualu hasn't reached the quarterback yet this season, but
he finished with a career-high four sacks mainly in a reserve role in 2017.
No comments:
Post a Comment