Steelers place Eric Ebron, J.C. Hassenauer on IR, promote 3 from practice squad

Tight end Eric Ebron and reserve offensive lineman J.C. Hassenauer were placed on injured reserve Saturday as part of a handful of roster moves leading into the following day’s game at the Cincinnati Bengals.

Ebron might have played his final game for the Steelers. An eight-year NFL veteran who signed with the Steelers last year, Ebron has a knee injury that reportedly is significant. Players must spend a minimum of three weeks on IR; the Steelers have seven games left in their season.

Ebron had a touchdown catch during last week’s loss at the Los Angeles Chargers, his sixth in 23 games with the Steelers and 33rd of his career.

Hassenauer began that game at left guard, his fifth start in the NFL. With starter Kevin Dotson on IR, the Steelers turn to a third-stringer at that position. It is unclear who will start Sunday’s game — veteran Joe Haeg came in after Hassenauer suffered a pectoral injury, veteran B.J. Finney spent four prior seasons as the Steelers’ top backup interior lineman and John Leglue was added to the active roster Saturday.

The Steelers are the fourth team Leglue has been a part of since being an undrafted free agent in 2019, but this is the first time he was added to a 53-man roster. The 6-foot-7, 310-pound Leglue played at Tulane. He apparently beat Rashaad Coward for the promotion.

The Steelers on Saturday also announced defensive lineman Daniel Archibong and wide receiver Anthony Miller were getting call-ups from the practice squad to the active roster for Sunday’s game.

Archibong played eight defensive snaps in his NFL regular-season debut last week at Los Angeles.

A former second-round pick of the Chicago Bears, Miller has 139 catches for 1,587 yards and 12 touchdowns in four NFL seasons, including two games in September for the Houston Texans. A slot receiver by trade, Miller joined the Steelers’ practice squad soon after a release by Houston. But the Steelers curiously bypassed promoting Miller last week, instead elevating Steven Sims from the practice squad. Sims played five snaps against the Chargers.

One final move for the Steelers on Saturday was signing kicker Sam Sloman to the practice squad. A seventh-round pick of the Los Angeles Rams last year, Sloman kicked in eight games as a rookie between them and the Tennessee Titans. He joined the Steelers’ training-camp roster over the summer but was among early cuts.

There is no known injury of Steelers kicker Chris Boswell, but Boswell has had issues with durability in recent seasons.

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