Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is reporting that Pittsburgh Steelers second round pick Senquez Golson could be facing shoulder surgery which would end his rookie season before it even begins.
The Steelers picked Golson in the 2015 NFL draft due to his tremendous ball-hawking skills, Golson nabbed 10 interceptions last year while playing for the Old Miss, despite his 5’9” size. While no one was projecting or expecting that Senquez Golson would push for a starting job, the Steelers had planed to use him in the slot.
- Golson participated in all of the Steelers OTA’s and mini-camps without incident, but later informed coaches that he felt he injured his shoulder during those sessions.
Golson was one of 5 Steelers to begin training camp on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list, and has not suited up for practice.
Concern about the availability of Golson apparently contributed to the Steelers decision to trade for Brandon Boykin over the weekend. Brandon Boykin, like Golson, is another short cornerback who has a knack for coming down with the ball.
Golson to Continue Recent Steelers Rookie Tradition?
If Senquez Golson’s rookie season is lost to shoulder surgery it starts, he will be following in the footsteps of a number of prominent rookies during the Mike Tomlin era. In 2012, David DeCastro and Sean Spence both began the season on IR, although DeCastro returned late in the season. A year before Baron Batch’s rookie season ended on the fields of St. Vincents. Prior to that, Chris Scott, a 5th round draft pick from 2010, injured himself weight lifting in June of that year and was lost for the season.
Lawrence Timmons, Keenan Lewis, Frank “The Tank” Summers, Ryan Shazier and Markus Wheaton all saw their rookie seasons seriously curtailed by injuries.
Rookies losing valuable time to injuries is not “tradition” that anyone would wish to emulate, but unfortunately it does seem like it will continue in 2015 at the very least.
