Joe Haden’s return critical to Steelers success against Texans
As I’m often known to do when choosing a “weak link” for the upcoming game, I carry on and exaggerate.
This week will be no different as I select a player returning from injury as the Steelers potential weak spot. That’s not to say I’m not excited about Joe Haden‘s return, but I also want to be careful with bringing him back.
Before his hiatus, Haden was back to playing at an elite level. For years, he was a top cornerback with the Cleveland Browns before mismanagement of that team wasted his talents. Once Cleveland released him before the start of the season, it was no surprise that the cornerback hungry Steelers pounced on signing Haden to a long-term deal.
However, the move didn’t come without its fair share of questions. Would Haden remain healthy after being plagued with injuries periodically throughout his tenure in Cleveland? Could he return to his previous prime form as well?
For a spell, neither of those questions crept into the minds of Steelers Nation, until Haden went down with a fractured bone in his leg. His replacement, Coty Sensabaugh, along with the rest of the Steelers secondary, were burned in the coming games. Sensabaugh would be benched for third-round draft pick Cameron Sutton, who also returned from an injury which kept him out for over half of the season.
Sutton got back into football shape and played the entire game against the Patriots as Haden slowly progressed back to the main roster with two week’s worth of practice.
Hence why I went with Haden this week. First, we’re all hoping he’s back to 100%. Second… what if he’s not? Can we count on Cam Sutton to play in his place? And for how long?
Say Haden were to be reinjured, that could be disastrous for the Steelers postseason hopes of getting back to the big game, let alone a single contest this Monday where Texans WR Deandre Hopkins is one of the best in the game.
However, I feel the reason we didn’t see Joe last Sunday is that of the risk factor of allowing him to play. It wasn’t worth the chance versus another week of rest, and the flow of subbing out Sutton and/or Haden was also risky against Tom Brady and the Patriots.
Therefore, while Haden could be a weak link, I also feel going forward he may be the strongest link to the Steelers defense getting back on track.
