The news just keeps getting worse for the Pittsburgh Steelers as they prep for Sunday's pivotal matchup with the Baltimore Ravens.
A team source told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that linebacker LaMarr Woodley's injured left hamstring is "not good," and he could be out a while.
Lombardi: Steelers take it to critics
After an embarrassing Week 1 loss, many wrote off the Steelers' defense as old and slow. They now are proving their detractors wrong, writes Michael Lombardi. **More ...**
Woodley, who went down during the third quarter of Sunday's win over the New England Patriots, is the latest of a trio of linebackers who will be sidelined for an extended period of time. James Harrison, who coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday has been cleared to practice, had already ruled himself out against the Ravens. James Farrior, who was inactive for Week 8, has a torn calf that could keep him out until December.
While reports indicated Woodley would be out against the Ravens, Woodley sounded a little more optimistic about his status in a video message linked from his Twitter account. "Everyone's counting me out," Woodley said. "Don't count me out yet."
Tomlin echoed that thought, saying he wasn't ready to rule out the possibility that both Woodley and Harrison, who suffered a broken orbital bone in Week 4, could play.
"When you look at us from an injury standpoint, the only person I would declare out at this point is (Steelers guard) Doug Legursky," Tomlin said at his Tuesday press conference. "We have a lot of guys whose participation will develop over the course of the week. ... LaMarr Woodley's participation will be dictated by his ability to practice."
Tomlin said Farrior and nose tackle Chris Hoke (neck) would practice in a limited capacity this week, while wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders needed to have his knee evaluated.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
