“Next man up.”
It is the mantra by Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin when it comes to the inevitable issue of injuries in the NFL. It’s just the reality of each season. Players will get injured. The way to deal with these injuries comes down to who is injured and what the plan is for the replacement.
In 2019, the Steelers had two players who finished the season on Injured Reserve and missed at least 10 games who are the top two salary cap hits for the 2020 season. When it came to replacing Stephon Tuitt, a new rotation along the defensive line emerged with Javon Hargrave playing a greater number of snaps which allowed the Steelers defense continued to roll along.