Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has struggled to stay healthy this season. After clawing his way back from an MCL injury suffered in Week 3, Roethlisberger suited up for just two games before again going down with an injury, this time to his ankle. In the immediate aftermath of the game, reports suggested that Big Ben's gimpy ankle was likely to keep him sidelined for at least "a few weeks." Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin wouldn't even commit to Roethlisberger being out for this weekend's game against the Cleveland Browns.
"We'll leave the door ajar for him," Tomlin said, via Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL Network. "It's just slightly ajar."
While that, of course, does not mean that Roethlisberger will suit up - it certainly wouldn't be the first time an NFL head coach played coy about the status of one of his most important players in order to keep the upcoming opponent on their toes - it seems highly unlikely Roethlisberger would be able to go after yet another fairly significant injury.
While a mid-foot sprain, as its being called, isn't as bad as an MCL sprain and is certainly better than the Lisfranc injury the team reportedly first feared, it's still a potentially troublesome injury that could likely be easily re-aggravated if Ben returns to the field too fast.
Unfortunately, with the Steelers now sitting at 5-4 after their gritty victory over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday - a game in which Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown flourished to the tune of 17 catches and 284 yards thanks to Roethlisberger - and holding only a tenuous grasp on a wild card playoff spot with the Seahawks, Colts, Broncos, and Bengals looming on the schedule, Roethlisberger may not have the luxury of taking time to heal before a return to the field and the increasingly desperate postseason hunt.
