Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said he aggravated his ankle injury during Sunday's regular-season finale against the Cleveland Browns, but he didn't seem worried about his status for this weekend's wild-card matchup against the Denver Broncos.
"I had a little setback early in the third quarter," Roethlisberger said Wednesday while speaking with reporters, adding that he's working with trainers and doctors to get the ankle back in shape.
Roethlisberger was limited in practice and walked into the trainer's room afterward with a noticeable limp.
"We got set back about a week," he said.
In a conference call with reporters, the quarterback said that on a scale of 1 to 10, his ankle was at a 5, according to The Denver Post.
Roethlisberger suffered the high ankle sprain during a Week 14 victory over the Browns. He played with it in Week 15 but struggled, throwing for 330 yards but no touchdowns and three interceptions against the San Francisco 49ers.
Next in line on Pittsburgh's depth chart is Charlie Batch, who started in place of Roethlisberger and threw for 208 yards and one interception in a 27-0 victory over the St. Louis Rams in Week 16.
The Steelers will be without running back Rashard Mendenhall, who suffered a season-ending knee injury Sunday, and safety Ryan Clark, who has a sickle cell trait that prohibits him from safely playing in Denver's high altitude.
The Steelers also placed rookie linebacker Chris Carter (hamstring) on season-ending injured reserve Wednesday and promoted running back Albert Young from the practice squad for depth. Young, a third-year pro, has 82 rushing yards in his career with the Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguars.
Along with Roethlisberger, center Maurkice Pouncey (left ankle) also was limited in practice Wednesday. Linebacker James Harrison (toe), defensive end Brett Keisel (right groin), running back Mewelde Moore (sprained left knee) and safety Troy Polamalu (right calf) didn't practice. All but Moore are expected to play against the Broncos.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
