Levi Brown and David Johnson Shelved For the Year

Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USPRESSWIRE

In a move which came as no surprise after both sustained injuries on Sunday afternoon, the Pittsburgh Steelers placed offensive tackle Levi Brown and tight end David Johnson on injured reserve for the rest of the year according to the team’s official Twitter account:

The Brown move is an enormous “kick to the groin” for the franchise, especially since he was supposed to help shore up their problematic left tackle position. The veteran did not even log a regular season snap for Pittsburgh before he hurt his triceps during the team’s pregame workout before last Sunday’s game at MetLife Stadium.

With Kelvin Beachum set to man the left tackle position, Marcus Gilbert set to start on the right side, and Mike Adams as the primary backup, Ben Roethlisberger will be running for his life over the final 12 games. Then again, how much Brown would have helped is up for debate.

The loss of Johnson hurts the Steelers because they were already “razor-thin” in terms of depth at the tight end position. Johnson’s injury is also unfortunate too since he had just returned from a torn ACL he suffered during Pittsburgh’s first preseason game last year.

David Paulson and Michael Palmer will likely see more reps because of the loss of Johnson, and now there is no fullback behind Will Johnson, who has been hobbled at times with various injuries since the preseason, as well.

Stats & Contract Info. Provided By: ESPN.com, Steelers.com , Spotrac, and Pro Football Reference

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