Starter has torn ACL, out for season

Originally Published: August 19, 2004

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By Len Pasquarelli
ESPN.com
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The resurrection of the Pittsburgh Steelers' offensive line suffered a serious setback Thursday when the team learned that starting right guard Kendall Simmons has a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee and won't play this season.


	Simmons

A third-year veteran and the Steelers' first-round choice in the 2002 draft, Simmons suffered the injury during practice Wednesday, but team officials were convinced it was little more than a sprain. An MRI exam revealed the more serious tear, however, and Simmons will undergo season-ending surgery when swelling in the knee subsides.

The injury is a huge blow for Simmons -- and for his teammates.

"All these things are part of the game," coach Bill Cowher told reporters at camp Thursday in Latrobe, Pa. "We're not the only ones going through it, everyone's going through it and the one thing you don't want to do is alter how you approach the game."

Chosen 30th overall out of Auburn, Simmons was enjoying a strong training camp after a 2003 season marred by a series of physical problems. Despite starting all 16 games, Simmons, 25, struggled last season after he was diagnosed with hypoglycemia, a diabetes-like condition that was discovered right before training camp.

Simmons lost considerable weight, and he played the entire season in less than ideal condition. It wasn't until this offseason that Simmons regained tone and was able to add back much of the weight he had lost. He missed two games in his 2002 rookie season with injuries and suffered knee and ankle injuries in college.

Pittsburgh's offensive line also is coming off a disruptive '03 campaign, one in which the five projected starters were rarely on the field together. That situation contributed to a downturn in the Steelers' running game, and Pittsburgh finished No. 31 in the NFL in rushing yardage, its poorest performance since the 1970 merger.

The No. 1 unit looked crisp, however, in Saturday's preseason loss at Detroit. The left side of the line, particularly tackle Marvel Smith and guard Alan Faneca, dominated on the game's opening drive. It is not yet known how the Steelers will compensate for the loss of Simmons, who has started 30 of a possible 32 games in two years.

According to The Associated Press, Simmons' agent, Eric Metz, said his client will get a second opinion next week in Birmingham, Ala., Dr. James Andrews, a noted knee specialist.

"He's holding out hope that there's some way he can brace it up or do something along those lines to get out there and play, but it looks like there's a very slim chance of that," Metz told AP.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer at ESPN.com. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.