Pittsburgh Steelers rookie right tackle Troy Fautanu will not play in Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Chargers due to a knee injury.
The 20th overall pick in the draft practiced most of the week but hurt his knee on Friday. He was first listed as questionable on the injury report, but was then downgraded to out on Saturday.
Fautanu was set to make his second career start as the Steelers (2-0) faced the Chargers (2-0). The 23-year-old from Washington had previously dealt with a knee injury during training camp but impressed coach Mike Tomlin when he was cleared to return earlier this month.
With Fautanu out, Broderick Jones will take back his starting position. Jones, a first-round pick in 2023, was replaced by Fautanu last week during the game against Denver.
Jones had a tough time in a series of plays early in the second quarter, receiving three penalties in just a few snaps, and spent the rest of the game on the bench.
Earlier this week, Tomlin mentioned that he had no plans to completely move on from Jones.
“I am sure (Jones) suffered some disappointment in terms of Troy starting,” Tomlin said. “It’s a natural thing. But he has to move past it and I have to give him an opportunity to move past it as a leader.”
