Chris Wormley knee injury will require surgery, effectively ending his Steelers season

Chris Wormley’s third season with the Pittsburgh Steelers likely is over as a result of a left knee injury he suffered late in the third quarter Sunday in the 16-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

Wormley was seen sporting a brace Monday, and coach Mike Tomlin announced Tuesday that the 29-year-old defensive end will need surgery to repair the damage to the knee.

If Wormley is placed on injured reserve, as expected, he would miss the final four games of the regular season.

Wormley, one of the team’s most experienced backup defensive linemen, had three tackles, half a sack and a forced fumble against the Ravens before his injury.

“That is significant,” Tomlin said about Wormley’s contributions. “But each week we look at the guys that are available to us, and we put together schematics to highlight who’s available.”

Wormley’s absence likely will lead to more playing time for second-year defensive end Isaiahh Loudermilk and rookie DeMarvin Leal down the stretch.

“We’ve had weeks where others are unavailable, and we’ve leaned more toward them,” he said. “He is going to be unavailable, so we will lean more toward others and their skill sets and what they might be able to provide us.”

Wormley is in the final year of a two-year, $4.5 million contract. He will become an unrestricted free agent in March.

Tomlin said tight end Pat Freiermuth is dealing with a recurring foot injury that kept him off the field for several plays against the Ravens. He played a season-low 31 offensive snaps.

Freiermuth could be limited in practice early in the week but is expected to play Sunday against Carolina.

Tomlin listed no other significant injuries.

Changing position

Tomlin underscored the swing in field position produced in the punting game as a component in the 16-14 loss. It went beyond Pressley Harvin’s 17-yard punt, which he called “low-hanging fruit.”

He also referenced Harvin’s punt in the third quarter from the Ravens 48 that went into the end zone and a hold by James Pierre on a return that moved the ball from the Steelers 48 to the 32.

“When I look at the totality of the punting game, we had a touchback, and you can’t have touchbacks when you’re trying to play the long field game,” he said.

Panthers pride

Since Steve Wilks replaced Matt Rhule as Panthers interim coach following a 1-4 start, he has presided over a turnaround that has helped Carolina emerge as contenders for the division title in the mediocre NFC South. Despite having the No. 30-ranked offense, the Panthers have won three of their past four games and are 5-8 heading into the game against the Steelers.

Wilks, 53, coached the Arizona Cardinals for one season before being fired. He has joined Brian Flores’ racial discrimination lawsuit against the NFL.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for his work, his body of work and his mentality regarding ball,” Tomlin said.

“I think that’s just been reflected in terms of the makeup of their group. They’ve taken a tough circumstance and they’ve settled it down. They’ve developed personality in all three phases. They play complementary football. They lean on their strengths and try to minimize their weakness. They divide the labor up very well in all three phases. They ask people to do specific things, and when you do that, you have an opportunity to elevate the floor.”