Steelers vs. Chargers NFL Week 11 injury report, odds: Spread rising with uncertainty around Ben Roethlisberger, TJ Watt, Minkah Fitzpatrick
Pittsburgh could be without three of its best players Sunday night at the Chargers.
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The spread on Sunday night's Pittsburgh Steelers at Los Angeles Chargers game already has risen a point to Chargers -4.5 at Caesars Sportsbook – and I'm starting to see -5.5 at other books -- because the Steelers may not have quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, superstar linebacker and Defensive Player of the Year candidate TJ Watt or All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. The total has dropped from 48.5 to 47. Probably no Week 11 game has more uncertainty.
Roethlisberger missed this past Sunday's game in the COVID protocols and is reportedly showing symptoms. Big Ben is vaccinated – unlike Aaron Rodgers – so he will need to test negative for the virus twice, 24 hours apart and display no COVID symptoms for 48 hours before returning to the team facility. Rodgers had to isolate for 10 days due to not being vaccinated.
Pittsburgh suffered an ugly tie without Big Ben against the winless Lions, 16-16. Mason Rudolph was 30-for-50 for just 242 yards (4.8 yards per attempt), a TD and a pick. Over the past three seasons, the Steelers are 17-8 when Roethlisberger starts and 8-7-1 when he doesn't. Roethlisberger will attend meetings virtually this week and is preparing as if he'll return by Sunday night.
That tie means we could have a team finish .500 this season. It used to happen almost every year in the 16-game schedule but of course now there are 17 so a club would have to finish 8-8-1.
Fitzpatrick joined Big Ben on the COVID list Monday and nearly every player who has landed on it this season has missed that week's game at a minimum. Fitzpatrick has 64 combined tackles and a forced fumble this year. He has been a first-team All-Pro each of the past two seasons. Rookie Tre Norwood would likely start in his spot.
Watt left Sunday's game with a hip and knee injury and cornerback Joe Haden left with a mid-foot sprain. MRIs on Watt's knee and hip came back negative, but he still could miss time. He has 12.5 sacks (second in the NFL) and three forced fumbles on the year and is a +500 third-favorite to win NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
Watt now has 62 career sacks and surpassed the late Derrick Thomas (61 sacks) and Watt's brother J.J. (61) for the second-most sacks by a player in his first 70 career games since 1982, when the individual sack became an official statistic. Only Reggie White (79 sacks) had more.
Taco Charlton is in line to start if Watt misses time. Charlton actually was selected at No. 28 in the 2017 NFL Draft, two spots ahead of Watt, by the Dallas Cowboys (oops).
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