A day after reinjuring his knee in practice, rookie first-round pick Troy Fautanu was downgraded to out for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ game Sunday against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Broderick Jones will reclaim his starting job at right tackle and start in place of Fautanu as the Steelers try to improve to 3-0.
In addition, offensive lineman John Leglue and defensive back James Pierre were elevated from the practice squad.
Fautanu supplanted Jones last weekend in Denver when he made his first NFL start. The Steelers had a rotation planned that involved both tackles, but Jones was yanked after his first series when he committed three penalties in a six-play span.
Fautanu originally injured his knee during the preseason opener against Houston. He did not play again the rest of the preseason and was one of just two players who didn’t see any snaps in the season opener at Atlanta.
But coach Mike Tomlin was impressed enough by Fautanu’s swift development that he nudged him ahead of Jones on the depth chart this week.
Fautanu is expected to have further testing done on his knee to determine the extent of the injury.
The Steelers already ruled out left guard Isaac Seumalo and tight end MyCole Pruitt from dressing against the Chargers, who also have a 2-0 record.
Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.