The Pittsburgh Steelers do not allow players who are using crutches to stand on their sideline during games, and Ben Roethlisberger wasn’t about to watch Thursday night’s game against the Baltimore Ravens from a box. So he didn’t bother with the crutches, instead putting weight on his injured knee.
That could be a very positive sign.
According to former NFL head team physician David J. Chao, the Steelers’ medical staff would have never allowed Roethlisberger to stand without crutches for an entire game if they were overly concerned.
.@steelers may have lost game but likely will get #BigBen sooner than expected. Off crutches indicates bone bruise better than anticipated.
— David J. Chao, MD (@ProFootballDoc) October 2, 2015
Yes, TOMLIN has a "no crutch rule", but no way @steelers med staff would allow #BigBen to be full weight bearing if bad for bone bruise.
— David J. Chao, MD (@ProFootballDoc) October 2, 2015
.@steelers med staff may have advised crutches for MCL, but no way #BigBen went against medical advice on bone bruise. Brace for MCL.
— David J. Chao, MD (@ProFootballDoc) October 2, 2015
.@JasonDByrne No crutches indicates MCL progressing fine but bone bruise could delay overall return and now less likely to for #BigBen
— David J. Chao, MD (@ProFootballDoc) October 2, 2015
It was previously reported that a bone bruise could give Roethlisberger more trouble than an MCL sprain, but that must not be a major concern. Roethlisberger was originally expected to miss 4-6 weeks, and the Steelers would love if it ends up being closer to the lower end.
You can see the video of the play Roethlisberger was injured on here.
We all saw what happened with Steelers kicker Josh Scobee — and the way he was mocked over it on Twitter — in Thursday night’s loss to the Ravens. But Scobee’s woes overshadowed an overall poor performance from Michael Vick, who made inaccurate throws and took some horrible sacks. The 2-2 Steelers desperately need Roethlisberger back as quickly as possible.
