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Brooke Pryor, ESPN Staff Writer
PITTSBURGH — The Steelers will be without starting left guard Isaac Seumalo for the season opener in Atlanta, coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday.
Seumalo sustained what was feared to be a serious pectoral injury in last week’s practice, sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter, but Tomlin expressed optimism about Seumalo’s trajectory beyond Week 1.
“We did get good news regarding his pec injury,” Tomlin said. “We’ll characterize as week-to-week, and we’ll see where next week leads us, but really optimistic about his return sooner rather than later.”
With Seumalo out, second-year lineman Spencer Anderson, a former seventh-round pick, is slated to get his first NFL start against the Falcons. Anderson appeared in eight regular-season games as a rookie and was lauded for his versatility.
“His versatility was a calling card that allowed him to sustain, but the longer he is here, you better specialize in a certain area,” Tomlin said of Anderson. “And really his growth and development kind of reminds me a lot of [former Steeler lineman] Kelvin Beachum.”
Tomlin, meanwhile, left the door open for a group of rehabbing players to play against the Falcons. He said rookies Roman Wilson and Troy Fautanu along with running back Jaylen Warren and cornerback Cory Trice Jr. were limited in Monday’s practice.
Wilson hasn’t fully practiced since sustaining an ankle sprain during the first padded practice of training camp, while Fautanu sprained his knee in the opening preseason game. Warren left the second preseason game with a hamstring injury, while Trice exited with a groin injury. Warren said Monday he plans to participate in team periods during Wednesday’s practice, and he anticipates being able to play Sunday.
“We had some guys dealing with some short-term misery regarding injury,” Tomlin said. “But those guys that I mentioned appear to be turning the corner and moving toward availability, but we’ll watch as we go through the week, make sure we don’t get any negative trends — but not only from a health standpoint.
“Some of these guys don’t have extended résumés, and so we’ll be watching the quality of their play as well as we reengage them in this readying process.”