In what could ultimately be some devastating news for the Pittsburgh Steelers, starting cornerback Artie Burns suffered a non-contact knee injury in practice on Wednesday. He was immediately removed from the session and wasn’t in the locker room following practice.
Steelers CB Artie Burns left practice after suffering a non-contact right knee injury, confirmed to @TheAthleticPIT by both Mike Hilton and Cam Sutton. Burns wasn't in the locker room following practice. Sutton would start if Burns can't go on Sunday.
— Mark Kaboly (@MarkKaboly) January 10, 2018
We’re not fans of speculating on the severity of injuries like this, but the fact that it was of the non-contact variety doesn’t bode well for Burns.
A first-round pick of the Steelers back in 2015, Burns started all 16 regular season games for the team as a sophomore. He recorded 54 tackles, 13 passes defended and an interception. He was one of the primary cogs on a Steelers pass defense that ranked fifth in the NFL during the regular year.
If Burns is unable to go in the AFC Divisional Playoffs against Jacksonville this weekend, rookie Mike Hilton would more than likely get the start.
We’ll have further updates as they become available.