The worst fears for the Steelers have been realized.
The Steelers confirmed that right tackle Willie Colon is scheduled for surgery Wednesday. Scout’s Adam Caplan confirms that Colon tore his Achilles. The ninth-month rehab should knock Colon out for the season. On top of that, the Steelers revealed that fifth-round pick, tackle Chris Scott, broke his foot last week.
A few of scoffed when we said Colon was a huge loss, but the Pittsburgh Post Gazette calls Colon the team’s best offensive lineman. He won’t be easy to replace.
We pegged Trai Essex as the most mostly candidate to replace Colon; he could slide over from right guard. Ramon Foster and Kraig Urbik are other possibilities, but Ed Bouchette writes that “more than likely” the Steelers will replace Colon with free agent pickup Jonathan Scott, who started eight games in Buffalo last year.
So, to review: The Steelers are transitioning to an immobile quarterback for the first four games of the season, and probably will replace their best offensive lineman with a tackle the Bills didn’t want. Giddy up.