Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker Alex Highsmith will not be going on injured reserve, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Highsmith suffered a high ankle sprain on Sunday, and putting him on injured reserve would have forced him to miss the next four games, which would include the first game after the bye week.
Highsmith popped up on the injury report Friday with the injury but was listed without a game designation. However, this new high ankle sprain is a swerve in all of that, and will cause him to miss some time.
Nick Herbig took over for Highsmith and registered seven pressures and an interception off a tipped pass from star Cam Heyward.
Highsmith had a sprained ankle last season and missed multiple games after going down with the injury. He also missed time this offseason and last year with a groin injury that continuously has popped up throughout his career.
The Steelers had a rash of soft tissue injuries in 2024 that forced multiple players to miss significant time, including Highsmith, who still rounded into a productive year despite missing time with that groin injury as well as an ankle injury.
Highsmith’s injury troubles in 2024 were an outlier in his career, and he hopes to put those behind him in 2025 as he rounds into game shape once again.
In Week 1, Highsmith had one sack and eight pressures against the Jets. He played just ten snaps this week.
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