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Steelers coach excited about Benny Snell’s potential return for next game
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One game back of the Houston Texans and Oakland Raiders in the AFC Wild Card race, the Pittsburgh Steelers have done an impressive job of treading water following the offseason trade of former Central Michigan Chippewa Antonio Brown and the season-ending loss of former Miami (Ohio) RedHawk Ben Roethlisberger (elbow) in Week 1.
Facing the winless Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday (1:00PM ET, CBS), the Steelers have a prime opportunity to add another tally to the win column.
According to head coach Mike Tomlin, there may be even more reason for optimism as the return of rookie running back Benny Snell appears imminent.
Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette shared the latest comments from Tomlin on Twitter:
Tomlin said he's "excited about the potential return" of rookie RB Benny Snell, who has missed the past two games. Snell's health will be evaluated in practice but so will his mental prep as a rookie who's missed two games.
— Gerry Dulac (@gerrydulac) November 19, 2019
With the status of former Pittsburgh Panther James Conner (shoulder) unclear, Snell and Jaylen Samuels – a member of the North Carolina State Wolfpack program from 2014-17 – could have the opportunity to head the Steelers’ rushing attack.
A product of Westerville Central High School in Ohio, Snell was a three-star prospect in the 2016 class. Proving that rating was far too low, he racked up 3,873 yards during his three years with the Kentucky Wildcats en route to becoming the program’s all-time leading rusher.
Electing to forgo his final year of eligibility, he was selected by Pittsburgh in the fourth round (No. 122 overall) of April’s NFL Draft.
Appearing in seven games thus far, Snell has carried the football 28 times for 118 yards (4.2 AVG). He has also caught one pass for 14 yards.
Snell’s alma mater will host FCS UT Martin at 3:30PM ET on Saturday on the SEC Network.
A graduate of Bowling Green State University, Teddy Rydquist has been contributing to Saturday Down South and Saturday Tradition since 2019. In addition to his work here, he has covered the Michigan Wolverines for GBMWolverine and Wolverine Digest. He can be found on Twitter @TeddyRydquist.
