Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu has battled head injuries throughout his career, including twice this season. So it was a concern when the four-time All-Pro left Sunday night's 13-9 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs during the first quarter with another head injury.
But the Steelers seem to have received good news Monday. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported via Twitter that Polamalu checked out OK and will play this Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Steelers didn't classify Polamalu's injury, saying only that he had taken a "blow to the head" and would be evaluated. Polamalu didn't return, and Steelers coach Mike Tomlin was equally careful during his postgame news conference that it hadn't been determined whether or not the safety suffered a concussion.
"Troy had a blow to the head, concussion-like symptoms," Tomlin said. "Again we wanted to err on the side of caution, that's why we didn't let him return to the game. I don't know at this juncture if it was a concussion. I want to be clear there."
According to the Post-Gazette, Polamalu was "clear and lucid" by halftime against the Chiefs, but he was held out because of NFL rules.
Polamalu left an Oct. 16 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars with what the team later called a "very mild" concussion, but he played the following week against the Arizona Cardinals after passing tests.
Tomlin also confirmed that center Maurkice Pouncey (stomach virus) and linebacker Chris Carter (hamstring) didn't return to the game against the Chiefs.
