Steelers rookie WR Roman Wilson exits practice on cart

Brooke Pryor, ESPN Staff WriterJul 30, 2024, 12:26 PM ET

ClosePreviously covered the Kansas City Chiefs for the Kansas City Star and Oklahoma University for the Oklahoman.

LATROBE, Pa. — After showing flashes of potential through the early days of training camp, Pittsburgh Steelers rookie wide receiver Roman Wilson exited Tuesday’s practice with an ankle injury.

Wilson, a third-round pick, left the team’s first padded practice on a cart after getting rolled up on at the end of a jet sweep in the team’s signature “seven shots” drill. Wilson was making a play for the end zone when he got tackled short of the goal line. He exited the field under his own power before leaving practice.

“It was unfortunate we had an injury today, man,” coach Mike Tomlin said.

“Roman hurt his ankle on the tackle, and so we’ll have more information regarding the length of his status in terms of how long he might be out.”

Sources told ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler later Tuesday that Wilson is week-to-week, and that he will be “OK.” He could miss some time but it does not appear to be serious.

The Michigan product, who caught 48 passes for 789 yards and 12 touchdowns in 2023, showed promise in the first four days of practice, rotating in to work with the first-team offense.

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After trading Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers, the Steelers are thin at wide receiver behind top wideout George Pickens. The team signed Van Jefferson and Scotty Miller in free agency, and versatile third-year receiver Calvin Austin III is also in the mix for playing time. Wilson, though, is expected to have a role in Arthur Smith’s offense, making the injury potentially significant.

Also Tuesday, quarterback Russell Wilson ramped up to return from last week’s calf injury that sidelined him for the better part of the first four pad-less practices. The Steelers, though, were deliberate in their approach and had Wilson take only two team reps, both for handoffs. Wilson saw the most action during 7-on-7, completing all six pass attempts, including a deep shot to tight end Connor Heyward to put an exclamation point on the drill.

“I’m watching every rep and watching everything, even if I’m not in there,” Wilson said. “But then also getting the reps today was really good for me just to be able to do 7-on-7 and be in the mix.

“That was the plan the whole time, and just to be able to get as many reps in 7-on-7 as I could, and that was really good stuff.”