The Pittsburgh Steelers have dealt with their share of injuries in 2024. The offensive line was decimated when they lost James Daniels, Nate Herbig, and first-round pick Troy Fautanu for the season. On defense, it felt like Pittsburgh kept swapping Alex Highsmith for Nick Herbig, as one of the two edge rushers was constantly banged up.

Now things are looking bright.

As the Steelers prepare to host the Cleveland Browns for a revenge game in Week 14, they will do so at full strength. Pittsburgh lost their first contest against Cleveland on the road on Thursday Night Football in Week 12. The health of Mike Tomlin’s roster will help this time around.

Player	Position	Injury	Wednesday	Thursday
Mike Williams	WR	NIR – Rest	DNP	FP
Calvin Austin III	WR	Concussion	LP	FP
Najee Harris	RB	NIR – Rest	DNP	FP
Cory Trice Jr.	CB	Hamstring	FP	FP
Minkah Fitzpatrick	S	NIR – Rest	DNP	FP
Alex Highsmith	EDGE	Ankle	LP	FP
Montravius Adams	DT	Knee	LP	FP
Isaac Seumalo	OG	NIR – Rest	DNP	FP
MyCole Pruitt	TE	NIR – Rest	DNP	FP
T.J. Watt	EDGE	NIR – Rest	LP	FP
Cam Heyward	DL	NIR – Rest	DNP	DNP
Larry Ogunjobi	DL	NIR – Rest	DNP	FP

The most important note this week is the return of Highsmith. The talented edge rusher went down with an ankle injury against the Washington Commanders in Week 10. This forced him to miss three straight divisional games against the Ravens, Browns, and Bengals.

Now Highsmith is ready to make a triumphant return and help his team put the Browns in their place in Week 14. After a career season in 2023, Highsmith has played in just six of twelve games for the Steelers this season. Now after logging full practice this week, he’s healthy and on track to make his return.

Cory Trice Jr. is also set to make his comeback against the Browns on Sunday. We speculated each of the past two weeks if Trice would see the field for the Steelers. Now it looks like he’s finally ready to return. The young defensive back went down with a hamstring injury while on gunner duties chasing down a punt against the Chargers back in Week 3. He’s been absent ever since.

Prior to his injury, Trice was playing excellent football for the Steelers in a part-time role. Trice had an interception in the endzone against the Broncos early in the season that helped put the game on ice.

Calvin Austin III, who left the Steelers’ game against the Bengals with a head injury, will also return this week after being a full participant in practice. He will be joined by Montravius Adams, Pittsburgh’s rotational defensive tackle who hasn’t seen the field since Week 7 because of a knee injury.

The rest of the players on the Steelers injury report in Week 14 were given a veteran’s day off. Mike Tomlin is ensuring that his players are healthy and ready to go for Pittsburgh’s revenge game against the Browns at Acrisure Stadium on Sunday.

Key Browns players Steelers must contain to avenge recent loss in Cleveland

Pittsburgh Steelers v Cleveland Browns / Lauren Leigh Bacho/GettyImages

After a big win over the Bengals on Sunday, the Steelers now turn their attention to a crucial rematch against the Browns, seeking redemption from their loss to Cleveland two weeks ago. A victory this weekend would be a significant step toward contending for the AFC North title. To avoid a season sweep by Cleveland, the Steelers must craft a game plan to counter these key Browns players effectively.

QB, Jameis Winston

Jameis Winston made key plays against the Steelers, and his gritty performance was a driving force behind the Browns’ victory. To make the Browns’ offense one-dimensional, the Steelers will need to generate a strong pass rush and force a couple of turnovers.

While they managed to intercept Winston last time, his aggressive play style means Pittsburgh’s secondary will need to significantly improve after being shredded by Joe Burrow. The Steelers will need to tighten up their coverage and elevate their defensive play to have a better chance in this matchup.

RB, Nick Chubb

Nick Chubb found the end zone twice in the last matchup, though he didn’t rack up huge yardage on the ground. With a player of Chubb’s caliber, a breakout performance feels imminent. After a rough start to their run defense against Cincinnati, the Steelers made adjustments and improved in the second half.

If Pittsburgh can’t sustain that level of run defense for all four quarters, they could be in for a long day trying to stop the Browns’ ground game.

T, Jack Conklin

Jack Conklin managed to keep TJ Watt in check last time, but it’s going to be tough to replicate that performance. While it’s unlikely Conklin will have the same success again, this time I expect Watt will be moved around more, rather than staying on one side for the entire game.

The Browns executed a solid game plan to limit Watt previously but look for the Steelers to adjust and create more opportunities to free him up.

DE, Myles Garrett

Myles Garrett had a dominant performance against the Steelers, recording 3 sacks, and no matter what the Steelers threw at him, it had little effect. Their efforts to contain him fell short, and if they don’t improve their plan to neutralize him next time, their tackles will be in for a major challenge.