Steelers Rookie Receiver to Miss Remainder of the Season

The Pittsburgh Steelers will have to wait until next year to get a look at their young wide receiver. The team declined to activate rookie Calvin Austin from injured reserve following his 21-day practice window, meaning he'll miss the entire 2022 regular season.

LB T.J. Watt returned to practice today but remains on the Reserve/Injured List.

The 21-day window to activate WR Calvin Austin III from the Reserve/Injured List has expired. He will remain on the Reserve/Injured List for the remainder of the 2022 season.
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) October 26, 2022

Austin injured his foot in the first game of the preseason. He apparently didn't show enough in practice to merit a 53-man roster spot, so the Steelers will allow him to recuperate for the remainder of the year and hopefully come back strong in 2023. His unavailability will make it even less likely the Steelers part with third-year wide receiver Chase Claypool at the November 1st trade deadline.

The Steelers selected Austin as their 138th overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, adding him to a young and crowded wide receiver room that includes Claypool, Diontae Johnson and fellow rookie George Pickens. A speedy, undersized pass catcher out of Memphis, the 23-year-old wideout tallied 2541 receiving yards and 25 total touchdowns across four seasons for the Tigers.