The Steelers got the majority of the players who sat out practice on Wednesday with various bumps and bruises back on Thursday and appear to be in reasonably good shape heading into Sunday's game against the Ravens in Baltimore.
Among those returning on Thursday were wide receivers Diontae Johnson (toe) and JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee), tight end Eric Ebron (elbow) and offensive linemen Maurkice Pouncey (elbow) and Alejandro Villanueva. Ben Roethlisberger and guard David DeCastro also returned after being given the day off for maintenance.
Cornerback Mike Hilton also trended toward returning to play this week after sitting out last week's 27-24 win by the Steelers (6-0) over the Titans with a shoulder injury. After missing practice Wednesday, he returned in a limited role on Thursday. If Hilton is able to practice fully on Friday, he should play against the Ravens (5-1).
It wasn't all good news for the Steelers, however.
Fullback Derek Watt, who has missed two of the past three games with a hamstring injury, went from a full participant on Wednesday to being limited Thursday. And linebacker Ulysees Gilbert was added to the practice report as limited with a back issue. Gilbert missed the second half of the 2019 season with a back injury.
In addition, safety Jordan Dangerfield (quad) and defensive lineman Chris Wormley (knee) were held out of practice completely, making their availability Sunday unlikely.
Cornerback Jimmy Smith (Achilles' tendon) was downgraded from a limited participant to out for the Ravens, meaning he's trending in the wrong direction. Running back Mark Ingram, meanwhile, missed his second consecutive day of practice because of an ankle injury.
Cornerback Marlon Humphrey returned to practice after sitting out Wednesday because of an illness.