Pittsburgh Steelers starting right guard James Daniels will miss the rest of the 2024 season after suffering a torn Achilles in the team’s 27-24 loss to the Indianapolis Colts, according to a report by Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.
Daniels was injured in the first half of the game and did not return. He was replaced by 2023 seventh-round draft pick Spencer Anderson for the remainder of the game. The Steelers finished the game with backups at both guard positions.
Anderson had started the first three games at left guard, where Isaac Seumalo has yet to play a game this season after injuring his pec in a preseason practice.
Rookie fourth-rounder Mason McCormick rotated in with Anderson in the team’s Week 3 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. McCormick then started against the Colts, and the plan was for Anderson to rotate in at left guard, but the Daniels injury forced the Steelers to play both backups at the same time.
The Steelers were playing three players across the entirety of the center of the offensive line that had combined to start zero games before the beginning of the 2024 season.
Injuries have been the story of the season for the Steelers offensive line, which has now lost three players to season-ending injuries. Nick Herbig, the team’s top interior backup who was battling Zach Frazier for the starting center job, was lost for the season to a preseason rotator cuff injury.
First-round draft pick Troy Fautanu will miss the rest of the season after injuring his right knee in a practice before the team’s Week 3 game. Backup tackle Dylan Cook is on the injured reserve list with a Lisfranc injury to his foot, and while he is eligible to come off the IR this week, is expected to still miss more time.
As things stand on Monday, the Steelers are without five of their top 10 offensive linemen, including three starters and two key backups.
There is a chance that Seumalo, who was a limited participant in practice last week, could return in time for the Steelers’ Week 5 home game against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night.
Daniels might have played his final game as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers. The 27-year-old is in the final season of his three-year contract with the team and Daniels told Steelers Now this offseason that the team told him he would not be receiving an extension.
Seumalo is under contract for two more seasons, and the team could go with Anderson or McCormick at right guard moving forward.