Stefan Wisniewski to IR, David DeCastro out, Kevin Dotson to start vs. Broncos

The Pittsburgh Steelers placed veteran offensive lineman Stefan Wisniewski on injured reserve, meaning he cannot practice for at least the next three weeks. The man he replaced at right guard, David DeCastro, already has not practiced for the past three weeks.

Neither will play for the Steelers in their home opener Sunday. That leaves rookie Kevin Dotson as the starter against the Denver Broncos.

A five-time reigning Pro Bowl honoree, DeCastro suffered a knee injury during an Aug. 28 scrimmage at Heinz Field. Wisniewski suffered a pectoral injury during the season-opening Monday night win at the New York Giants, a game he started in place of DeCastro.

DeCastro and Wisniewski have combined for 247 career NFL games and 215 starts. Dotson, a fourth-round pick from Louisiana, has six snaps of NFL experience, all in the fourth quarter Monday after Wisniewski left the game.

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Compounding the “angst,” as coach Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Randy Fichtner have put it, of Dotson starting is that the Steelers’ right tackle will be making just his third career start on the offensive line. Chuks Okorafor takes over after the season-ending injury to Zach Banner.

“Dotson has been eager to learn, and he’s been showing good stuff ever since training camp,” running back James Conner said during a video conference call Friday. “Running back is all reaction anyway, so I trust that those guys are going to do their jobs, make the right blocks, and it’s up to me to make the right reads, so we will have to make it work.”

The Steelers added their 2019 seventh-round draft choice, Derwin Gray, to the active roster to replace Wisniewski. Drafted as a tackle out of Maryland, the 6-foot-4, 320-pound Gray often has practiced at guard. He spent all of last season and the first 12 days of this regular season on the Steelers’ practice squad.

Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the NFL injured reserve rules have been softened. An unlimited number of players can go on IR and come back off of it. The only stipulation is they must miss at least three weeks of practice and that, upon return to practice, they are activated to the 53-man roster within 21 days.

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