For the first time in almost a month since suffering a hamstring injury, Ahkello Witherspoon participated in a practice Wednesday. The Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback is hopeful that means a return to game action isn’t far behind.

“I felt good,” Witherspoon said before Thursday’s practice. “Just getting back out there, it just felt good being back out there and playing ball with the guys.”

Witherspoon had played every defensive snap of the Steelers’ season up until the point he was injured during the second half of the Sept. 22 loss at the Cleveland Browns. He missed the rest of that defeat and the three games that ensued but would “absolutely” not rule himself out for Sunday’s scheduled game at the Miami Dolphins.

“Just working towards that end,” Witherspoon said, a day after he practiced in a limited capacity and mere hours before he took part fully in Thursday’s practice.

“Really trying to see what position I’ll be in to play on Sunday. That’s what we’re doing during the week, is just slowly progressing. Seeing how my body responds.”

Here he is talking about the Dolphins’ speed and weapons on offense: pic.twitter.com/Th5jx47kkS

— Chris Adamski (@C_AdamskiTrib) October 20, 2022

Levi Wallace — who signed an identical free-agent contract with the Steelers in March that Witherspoon did — mostly picked up the slack in Witherspoon’s stead initially. But Wallace has missed the past 1 ½ games because of NFL concussion protocol. The Steelers also played their most recent game without cornerback Cameron Sutton and safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, meaning four of their top five defensive backs were out.

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