An injury update came to light for Pittsburgh Steelers rookie tight end/fullback DJ Thomas-Jones on the evening of July 28, and the news was as positive as it probably could be after his “significant” training camp injury.
“Per source, further testing revealed DJ Thomas-Jones does NOT have a torn Achilles, as some have speculated,” The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo reported on Monday night. “While Mike Tomlin said yesterday that the injury is ‘significant,’ it is not believed to be season-ending for the versatile UDFA.”
Penn Live reporter Nick Farabaugh also confirmed this update, stating: “Some good news for the Steelers and DJ Thomas-Jones — the team’s fears have been averted. Testing revealed he did not suffer a torn Achilles, team source confirmed. @MikeDeFabo on it.”
However, Farabaugh did add that “Thomas-Jones is still expected to miss significant time.”
A Long-Term Injury Absence Could Still Be the Nail in the Coffin for DJ Thomas-Jones’ Steelers Opportunity
While it’s great news for Thomas-Jones that he did not suffer a torn Achilles, which is one of the longest and most difficult injury recoveries in football, it likely won’t change much for his Steelers’ chances.
Thomas-Jones is an undrafted rookie, so situations like these are tricky. If he misses the rest of training camp and the entire preseason, it’s unlikely that head coach Mike Tomlin would want him on the active roster.
With the new injury rules, the Steelers could start him out on the injured reserve at the roster cutdown, but you can only designate two injured training camp players to return from IR midseason. So, Tomlin using one of these designations on an undrafted free agent with no NFL experience is probably not happening.
Thomas-Jones also began training camp healthy, so he cannot be transferred to the active/PUP list at this time.
That pretty much leaves very few options. Thomas-Jones can try and make it back before Week 1 to further state his case for a roster spot, although Farabaugh noted that he’s still “expected to miss significant time.”
The Steelers can offer him a place on the offseason roster next year and have him redshirt his rookie campaign on the injured reserve.
Or the two sides can part ways with an injury settlement, and Thomas-Jones can pursue a 2025 opportunity either with the Steelers or another NFL franchise once healthy again. Generally, this third option is the most likely outcome in situations like these.
Steelers Training Camp Updates Include Isaac Seumalo, Jonnu Smith & More
Steelers Now beat reporter Alan Saunders provided all the most recent injury updates from training camp on July 27. The headliner is still starting left guard Isaac Seumalo.
“LG Isaac Seumalo missed his fourth consecutive practice while on the non-football injury list with an undisclosed soft tissue injury,” Saunders noted on Sunday. “Spencer Anderson again moved up to the first team at left guard.”
On the flip side, new tight end Jonnu Smith was a full participant for the second straight day.
The following players either did not participate in practice or were limited with an injury:
- OLB Jeremiah Moon did not practice (calf).
- S Quindell Johnson was limited (unknown).
- C Ryan McCollum was limited (unknown).
- WR Montana Lemonious-Craig is day-to-day with a “lower-body soft tissue injury.”
Veteran running back and return specialist Cordarrelle Patterson also announced his release from the team on July 28 after missing his fourth straight practice. No official roster move has been made at this time.
