Steelers down key linebacker vs. Lions

Pittsburgh heads into Week 16 in Detroit missing a huge piece of its pass rush, with T.J. Watt officially ruled out for a second straight game as he continues recovering from a lung issue and hasn’t returned to practice yet.

That reality already had the Steelers walking a thinner line defensively, and now the injury report just took another bite out of the front seven.

Per Mike Garafolo, the Steelers downgraded linebacker Nick Herbig (hamstring) to out for Sunday’s game against the Lions. In the same update, Pittsburgh upgraded long snapper Christian Kuntz (knee) from questionable to no injury designation, clearing him to go.

Herbig being ruled out matters because it removes another option from a defense that’s already trying to patch together pressure without Watt.

With one edge rusher unavailable and a linebacker depth piece now sidelined, Pittsburgh’s rotation gets tighter, and that tends to show up most on third downs and in late-game series when the pass rush needs fresh legs.

The Kuntz news is quieter but not trivial. Long snapper issues can wreck a game in a way nobody plans for, and getting him off the injury designation stabilizes the operation for punts and field goals.

In a matchup where points and field position can swing quickly, “nothing weird happens on special teams” is a real win.

The Steelers aren’t walking into this Lions game empty-handed, though. Their offense just came off a strong Monday night showing, and Kenneth Gainwell has become a steady part of what they’re doing.

When asked about his own success, Gainwell credited Aaron Rodgers, saying, “Aaron Rodgers,” per Matthew Luciow, and pointing to trust and doing the small things. Through 14 games, he has 451 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns, plus 57 catches on 66 targets for 332 yards and two receiving scores.

That combination, injuries on defense and a reliable offensive contributor, tells you what Pittsburgh’s week looks like and what they need to do to step things up.

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