When Tyson Alualu went down with a season-ending ankle injury last year, the Steelers lost a nose tackle, but his family lost a chauffeur.
"I'm used to being the one to take care of everything," Alualu was saying last week in the Steelers locker room. "If the kids have something, I'd schedule around being there, or taking them to sporting events, practices. So, it was like everything got put on hold where I couldn't do that anymore."
And the Steelers' run defense wasn't too good, either.
But now more than a year removed from that fractured ankle, the oldest player on the roster can look back and appreciate the struggle — from all angles.