The Pittsburgh Steelers won’t be able to get a full week of practice in for this Sunday’s game against the New Orleans Saints.
Despite playing this Sunday’s game in Paris, the Steelers waited until Thursday night to take a redeye to France. It was a decision that didn’t sit well with their fans and their starting quarterback.
“I’ve played in three countries now,” Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said. “In each of them, we’ve left on Thursday early evening. It would have been nice one time to come over on a Monday.”
To make matters worse for Rodgers, the Steelers’ late travel plans cost them a practice session on Friday. Head coach Mike McCarthy said a significant wind storm forced the Steelers to cancel today’s practice.
“We had two plans coming in,” McCarthy told reporters, via Sports Illustrated. “Just really wanted to acclimate the players after the long flight, just based off the communication with the weather and the reality of the timing too. We had to make the decision before we landed just to put it together. But frankly, driving by, I wish we would’ve stopped. But this is part of our plan.”
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Big opportunity for the Steelers.
After taking care of business against the Colts and Buccaneers in back-to-back games, the Steelers are 4-2 heading into this Sunday’s matchup against the Saints.
If the Steelers want to keep pace with the Browns and Ravens in the AFC North, it’s imperative they take care of the Saints in Paris. Oddsmakers have McCarthy’s squad as three-point favorites at the moment.
Kickoff for the Steelers-Saints game is at 9:30 a.m. ET on NFL Network.
