In the aftermath of the Steelers’ 13-10 overtime win over Tennessee to open the 2009 NFL season, the question that needed answering was how long Troy Polamalu might be lost.
Thankfully for Steelers fans -- and, let’s be honest, football fans as a whole -- it appears Polamalu will be back this season. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said in his postgame press conference that Polamalu suffered an MCL sprain in his left knee when he was rolled into by Tennessee’s Alge Crumpler.
Tomlin said team doctors were still “reading the scans.” He added that MCL injuries “have a range of three to six [weeks] but that’s speculation at this point.”
Asked if it’s possible it could be a longer-term injury than that, Tomlin said, “I’m sure it’s possible but we don’t have any concrete evidence it’s worse than that.”
The Steelers play at Chicago a week from this Sunday. They then play the Bengals and Chargers. If he’s back on the early side, Polamalu would be ready for the next three Pittsburgh games against the Lions, Browns, and Vikings. If it takes the full six weeks, he may not be back until Week Nine at Denver. Pittsburgh has a bye in Week Eight.