8 days after appendectomy, Minkah Fitzpatrick has full workload for Steelers vs. Bengals

About 15 minutes after he’d played an entire professional football game, Minkah Fitzpatrick briefly looked down at a pair of bandages on his lower abdomen after removing his shirt and before headed to take a shower.

They served as proof that Fitzpatrick had undergone a surgical procedure just eight days prior. But Fitzpatrick was back in the Pittsburgh Steelers lineup for Sunday’s game against the Cincinnati Bengals, playing his regular role and workload just a little more than a week since undergoing an appendectomy.

“I was taking it day to day,” Fitzpatrick said of the past week. “I wasn’t messing around and making myself worse and making the recovery time longer. They cleared me Friday. I talked to multiple (medical personnel) and they said I was good to go, and to just be smart.”

A two-time All Pro safety, Fitzpatrick missed just his third game over a span or parts of four seasons with the Steelers when he sat out the Nov. 13 win against the New Orleans Saints that was played the day after his appendix was removed.

Fitzpatrick was not listed on the league-mandated status report released Friday, the official designation he would play against the Bengals.

Strange but true: the Steelers are 1-7 when Fitzpatrick plays this season but won both games they played without him (also the Oct. 2 victory against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers).

A disappointed Minkah Fitzpatrick on the performance of the Steelers defense today pic.twitter.com/9yewexUMbb

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) November 21, 2022

Inactives

With only one player on the 53-man roster out because of injury – cornerback Ahkello Witherspoon – the Steelers’ other four inactives were healthy scratches: No. 3 quarterback Mason Rudolph, rookie inside linebacker Mark Robinson, reserve interior offensive lineman Kendrick Green and cornerback Josh Jackson.

The Bengals were without two starters in star wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase and defensive tackle Josh Tupou. Cincinnati made a notable change at punter for the game, sitting 14-year veteran Kevin Huber in favor of Drue Chrisman, who made his NFL debut. Chrisman was property of the Steelers for a 48-hour span last December, and Huber is the Bengals’ record-holder for games played with the franchise.

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