Fitzpatrick out vs. Saints; CB hits IR

Steelers S Minkah Fitzpatrick will miss Sunday’s game against the Saints because of appendicitis, the team announced Saturday. Pittsburgh also placed CB William Jackson (back) on IR. He’ll now miss at least 4 games. That makes for a beat-up secondary against New Orleans

Steelers S Minkah Fitzpatrick (knee) is inactive for today's game against the Ravens. LB Elandon Roberts (pec) is active.

The Steelers list S Minkah Fitzpatrick (knee) and LB Elandon Roberts (pec) as questionable for Saturday's game against the Ravens. Each guy remained limited in practice all week and will carry some risk even if active. We'll check their statuses ahead of Saturday's kickoff.

Steelers S Minkah Fitzpatrick (knee) and LB Elandon Roberts (pec) put in limited practices Wednesday. It marked the first workout for Fitzpatrick since he left Week 15 with the injury. Roberts also practiced for the first time since leaving Week 16 early. We'll see whether the defensive starters are ready to play Saturday against the Ravens.

Steelers S Minkah Fitzpatrick will miss a second straight game with his knee injury. He has yet to practice since sustaining the injury. This will be the sixth missed game among the past nine for Fitzpatrick, leaving a severely depleted safety corps to face the Seahawks. Eric Rowe started in Fitzpatrick's place last week, collecting 7 tackles (3 solo) and an INT against the Bengals. He's still tough to use in Week 18 IDP lineups after just one start.

Steelers HC Mike Tomlin said Monday that S Minkah Fitzpatrick will miss Saturday's game against the Bengals with the knee injury that knocked him out of the Week 15 loss to the Colts. Trenton Thompson filled in and led Pittsburgh safeties in playing time in a game that also saw S Damontae Kazee ejected. CB Patrick Peterson also shifted over to safety for most of the game. Tomlin on Monday mentioned Eric Rowe and Elijah Riley as potential safety help for Week 16. The group is likely not worth your attention for IDP purposes this week. You can find a steadier option.

Update: The NFL has suspended Kazee for the rest of the season for "repeated violations of playing rules intended to protect the health and safety of players," according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. That leaves Pittsburgh without its top two current safeties, with Keanu Neal also not ready to return from IR.