Mark Robinson was taken aback when he was approached by a handful of reporters in the Pittsburgh Steelers’ locker room Friday.
“You wanna talk to me?” the rookie inside linebacker said. “I haven’t even played.”
That could change Sunday in Carolina after veteran inside Myles Jack was listed on the injury report as doubtful to play against the Panthers. If he doesn’t, that could open the door for Robinson to appear in an NFL game for the second time.
A seventh-round pick from Ole Miss who was a converted small-school running back, Robinson called the possible chance to play “a dream come true.”
“I don’t want to say I’m anxious but just being prepared for the moment and understanding what it takes to be here,” Robinson said Friday. “To a lot of people, it’s a game. But it’s real — we do it for a living, and when the opportunity comes your way we just pray, we get up and go do it. We live for it.”
Jack was a limited practice participant Friday after not practicing Wednesday or Thursday because of a groin injury. Though the Steelers have a starter-capable backup in Robert Spillane to join Devin Bush at inside linebacker, in playing the run-heavy Panthers they could elect to deploy more ILB-heavy packages.
Robinson was thought to be raw, but he was a playmaker during training-camp practices and preseason games and he might be a candidate to compete to start in 2023.
Freiermuth will play
Like Jack, tight end Pat Freiermuth was held to just one appearance — a limited one — in practice this week. Unlike Jack, though, Freiermuth was tacitly given a clean bill of health in that he did not have any status designation next to his name on the injury report. That means he will play against Carolina.
Also cleared were defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi (toe), running back Najee Harris (hip), wide receiver Diontae Johnson (hip) and cornerbacks Cameron Sutton (neck) and Josh Jackson (ankle). Of that group, only Sutton and Harris practiced fully Friday; the others were limited.
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