Mike Tomlin sheds light on Cory Trice Jr.'s unfortunate injury against the Lions

It is every team's dream to make it through the preseason injury-free. Unfortunately, the Steelers were unable to achieve that goal. Before their final test game against the Lions, Pittsburgh was already without center Nate Herbig and also had to deal with injuries that sidelined rookies Troy Fautanu and Roman Wilson.

Unfortunately, more injuries piled up during the Steelers’ last preseason game in Detroit.

In the final minutes of the game, sixth-round rookie draft pick Ryan Watts suffered a nasty injury but miraculously recovered on his own. Mike Tomlin spoke to the media immediately after the game and called it a “stinger,” although he is still being evaluated. Tomlin also mentioned that edge rusher Julius Welschof had to leave the game with a knee injury.

Among the three injured players mentioned in Tomlin's postgame press conference was Cory Trice Jr. The Steelers head coach noted that Trice left the game with a reported groin injury.

This is an unfortunate setback for a player who had a stellar preseason. In his first two tryouts, Trice played 47 defensive plays and allowed just two pass catches for four yards while recording one tackle for a loss and one run attempt.

Before leaving the final preseason game against the Lions, Trice made another impressive tackle that resulted in a loss of yardage. The only time he was targeted in the game, Trice nearly intercepted a screen pass and brought down his receiver for a one-yard gain.

Trice, who missed his entire rookie season with an ACL injury, is coming off a serious injury he was hoping to put behind him. Unfortunately, a groin injury is the latest setback for an extremely talented cornerback. At 6'3″ and 200 pounds, Trice has an excellent blend of physical attributes and a feel for the game.

Trice had secured the third cornerback job in Pittsburgh behind Joey Porter Jr. and the experienced Donte Jackson. While that could still be the case, he could be benched again early in his career with the Steelers.

At this point, we don't know the severity of Trice's groin injury, but we're hoping it's nothing serious. Last year, veteran defensive lineman Cameron Heyward landed on the injured list in Week 1 with a groin injury and didn't return to the field until Week 9.

As a seventh-round pick in 2023, opportunities are already hard to come by for Trice, who was on the fast track to a position in 2024. Aside from spectacular second-year edge rusher Nick Herbig, Trice was one of the biggest standouts for the Pittsburgh Steelers during the preseason.

Let’s hope he recovers quickly and can be back on the football field soon.