Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said on Thursday that it would be a crowd approach to replacing injured defensive lineman Chris Wormley. Wormley suffered a knee injury last week against the Baltimore Ravens and has been placed on IR, ending his season.
Austin said a combination of Isaiahh Loudermilk, DeMavin Leal, Carlos Davis and newly signed Jonathan Marshall will replace Wormley.
The Steelers have plenty of bodies along the defensive line, but aside from defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, none have stood out this season. Pittsburgh saw the retirement of Stephon Tuitt in the offseason and is still struggling to find any combination of players to adequately replace him.
This week the Steelers will take on the Carolina Panthers and need to be on their A-game when it comes to stopping the run. Carolina is a power-run team with multiple options in the backfield. Pittsburgh will have to keep fresh bodies in the game so they don’t wear down.