JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Two down, and not too much time to mend.
Still, Mike Tomlin didn't sound too concerned.
Joe Haden and JuJu Smith-Schuster were both injured Sunday in the Steelers' 27-3 victory over the Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field, and neither finished it. It wasn't clear what exactly they hurt, nor did the team make any announcement to that effect, though Haden's appeared to be an ankle and Smith-Schuster's appeared to be either a hamstring or his back.
Regardless, the only name cited by Tomlin in his standard postgame injury update was that of third-string tight end Zach Gentry, who sustained what Tomlin termed a "significant" knee injury in the first quarter.
Beyond that, per Tomlin, "All of the others were minor bumps and bruises associated with play, even Joe Haden. He was able to go back into the game after he sustained an injury. But with bumps and bruises on a short week, we are not taking anything for granted so we will assess those and update you guys appropriately and put together a plan that is focused on the healthy guys. I think that's the appropriate thing to do on a short week.”
The Steelers' next game is Thursday night against the Ravens at Heinz Field.
Pressed to elaborate on Smith-Schuster, since he hadn't been mentioned at all, Tomlin replied, "Yeah, I don’t think it’s anything major, which is why I just associated it with the bumps and bruises associated with play. Again, it could be a factor for him. It could be factors for others knowing we are dealing on a short week. I will update you guys as soon as I can when we get back to the top of the week."
Tomlin's weekly press conference will be noon Monday, a day earlier than usual.
Haden was hurt midway through the third quarter on a short Jacksonville run, staying down for nearly two minutes as teammates gathered around him. He popped up and walked off on his own, though, and needed only 30 seconds of examination in the blue injury tent before being released. He missed the rest of that series, replaced by Justin Layne, then returned for the next one, then was again replaced by Layne the rest of the way.
Smith-Schuster was hurt early in the fourth quarter. He was working a route and, without being touched, grabbed the back of his left leg, then motioned in frustration to the sideline to be replaced. He didn't return.
On the plus side: Mike Hilton returned to the active roster after missing three weeks to a shoulder injury, and Chris Wormley returned after missing nearly two months to a knee injury.
The Steelers' inactives were running backs Trey Edmunds (hamstring) and Jaylen Samuels (quadriceps), nose tackle Isaiah Buggs (ankle), linebacker Jayrone Elliott (illness) and quarterback Josh Dobbs.
Jacksonville lost starting left guard Andrew Norwell to an arm injury in the second quarter, starting defensive end Josh Allen to a knee injury in the third.
The Jaguars' inactives were quarterback Gardner Minshew II (thumb), cornerbacks Sidney Jones (Achilles) and CJ Henderson (groin), wide receiver Laviska Shenault (hamstring), tight ends James O'Shaughnessy and Tyler Davis, linebacker Quincy Williams and offensive lineman KC McDermott. The first four names listed are starters.