Steelers Now
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin believes veteran defensive lineman Cam Heyward will take the field against the New York Jets on Sunday.
Heyward has practiced the past two weeks after holding in for a good bit of training camp, waiting for a new deal. Heyward left some doubt as to whether he’d play on the latest episode of his podcast.
“I’m certainly expecting Cam to play,” Tomlin said during his Tuesday press conference. “Cam doesn’t play a lot in team development over the last several years. My job is to get him in and out of Latrobe — and I’ve done my job. And so, there are no reservations about his participation or his readiness. I’m sure he’s chomping at the bit.”
Heyward is a key cog on the Steelers’ defensive line, which will be without rookie first-round pick Derrick Harmon, who’s dealing with a sprained MCL. Behind Harmon, the Steelers will deploy Isaiahh Loudermilk, Daniel Ekuale and Yahya Black.
“It’s gonna be a committee of people, but I would imagine it would’ve been a committee of people if he were available,” Tomlin said of Harmon. “We generally play a lot of D-linemen, particularly early in the season. … I just think globally speaking this time of year, most teams play a lot of bigs up front defensively so that fatigue doesn’t become a factor.”
Heyward said he’s still “looking for my contract to be addressed” and that the two sides aren’t anywhere close to resolving the dispute. He’s said before that he’s willing to miss games while waiting for an agreement.
Alan Saunders contributed reporting from Pittsburgh.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Steelers Hoping Cam Heyward Plays in Season Opener
