The Steelers could be without both their leading rusher and receiver for a critical game Sunday in New Orleans.
JuJu Smith-Schuster was a partial participant in practice Friday with a groin injury that cropped up Thursday and will be a game-time decision. Meanwhile, James Conner will miss his third consecutive game with a high-ankle sprain.
That's not good news for the Steelers (8-5-1) in a game they need to win to assure they remain in first place in the AFC North. They currently hold a half-game lead over the Ravens (8-6), who play the Chargers (11-3) in Los Angeles on Saturday night. A loss by the Ravens would mean the Steelers could clinch the AFC North with a win over the Saints (12-2). But that will be much more difficult without Smith-Schuster and Conner.
Smith-Schuster will likely test the injury out in warmups to see if he's capable of playing.
"We gotta go without him," Antonio Brown said if Smith-Schuster is unable to play. "But I think he'll be there this weekend."
Smith-Schuster and Conner, both members of the team's 2017 draft class, have combined for 922 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns, and 147 receptions for 1,741 yards and seven receiving touchdowns. That's 70 percent of the team's rushing yardage and 39 percent of its receiving yards.
Two members of the 2018 draft class would be tasked with replacing that production.
Rookie Jaylen Samuels is expected to make his third consecutive start at running back in place of Conner. Samuels rushed for a career-high 142 yards on 19 carries and caught two passes for 30 yards last week in a 17-10 win over New England.
"I knew it was a big game," Samuels told me of last week's effort. "All throughout my career, that’s when I tend to show up, in big games. I just love to get up for those games and get excited. All night the day before, I’m just seeing the plays, seeing the game play out in my head. That’s what you’ve got to do, see it before it happens. I just went out there and executed and took it slowly, play by play and tried to do what I had to do."
That should be more difficult this week against a New Orleans defense ranked No. 1 in the NFL against the run, and may force the Steelers to lean more on their passing game — not exactly outside their norm. The Steelers have a 2-to-1 ratio when it comes to the pass versus the run, the highest in the league.
The Saints had four of their five starting offensive linemen miss practice time or be limited all week. But all are expected to play. Only swing offensive tackle Jamon Bushrod (hamstring) has been declared out.