Steelers running back DeAngelo Williams does not have a fracture or any major damage in his right foot and has an outside chance, albeit a small one, of playing Saturday night in a wild-card playoff game in Cincinnati, a team source confirmed to the Post-Gazette.
Williams had an MRI Sunday night after the Steelers returned from their 28-12 victory in Cleveland and is expected to be listed as day-to-day for the Bengals. His biggest issue could be a matter of pain tolerance, the source said.
ESPN first reported that Williams did not sustain any fractures or structural damage to his right ankle and is day-to-day.
The Steelers do not intend to sign a veteran running back for the postseason as they did a year ago when they brought in Ben Tate, after Le’Veon Bell was injured in the season finale, and started him in a wild-card playoff loss to the Baltimore Ravens. They intend to use Fitzgerald Toussaint, Jordan Todman and fullback Will Johnson against the Bengals.
Williams was injured early in the second quarter against the Browns and did not return to the game. But after being taken on a cart to the locker room, he later returned to the sideline in full uniform and tried testing his foot by bouncing on his feet.
After the game, Williams left the locker room wearing a protective walking boot without the aid of crutches. Asked how he was feeling, Williams said, “I feel good.”
Curiously, the Steelers think Williams might have had a better chance of playing against the Bengals if the game were Sunday, rather than Saturday, giving his injured ankle another day of rest.
Williams, 32, finished fourth in the AFC in rushing with 907 yards on 200 carries, a 4.5-yard average. Before he was injured against the Browns, he had only 8 yards on five carries.
Clarification, posted Jan. 5, 2016: The injury running back DeAngelo Williams suffered Sunday was to his foot, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said today.
First Published: January 5, 2016, 2:32 a.m.