Steelers offensive lineman Stefen Wisniewski returned to practice on Wednesday, but remains on the team’s injured reserve as the team began the process of returning him to the active roster.
Wisniewski suffered a pectoral injury during the Steelers’ season opener against the New York Giants and has missed each of the team’s last three games.
Three games is the minimum amount of time that player can spend on injured reserve before being reactivated, in a rule change for the 2020 season. Now that Wisniewski has begun practicing, the Steelers have 21 days to either reinstate him to the active roster or return him to the injured reserve for the remainder of the 2020 season.
Wisniewski’s return from injury would come at a good time for the Steelers, as starting center Maurkice Pouncey and starting right guard David DeCastro are both expected to miss practice time this week with injuries.
The Steelers signed Wisniewski to a two-year contract this offseason from the Kansas City Chiefs in order to serve as the team’s primary backup at both center and guard.
While Wisniewski was injured, rookie guard Kevin Dotson played at right guard while DeCastro missed time and first-year center J.C. Hassenauer filled in for Pouncey.