Mark Barron thankful for extra rest he has gotten in 1st year with Steelers
In training camp, preseason and the first month of the regular season, it wasn’t uncommon for Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin to give inside linebacker Mark Barron a veteran’s day off from practice one day each week.
Barron said it wasn’t because of a recent injury history, but rather a concession to shoulder and heel surgeries he had after the 2017 season when he was with the Los Angeles Rams. Barron had bone spurs removed from his left heel that offseason, which slowed him in 2018, his final season in Los Angeles.
Barron, who turns 30 on Sunday, is appreciative that in his eighth NFL season, Tomlin is providing him extra rest during the week.
“We don’t want to aggravate that,” Barron said Saturday. “It’s a precautionary measure. They’ve done a great job of taking care of me here.”
Barron was limited in practice Friday. This time, it was to rest a hamstring injury that kept him from playing in Week 6 at the Los Angeles Chargers. Barron returned to full participation Saturday and expects to play Monday night against the Miami Dolphins even though he is listed as questionable on the official injury report.
“I don’t want to go backwards,” Barron said. “It was easing my way into the weekend, easing my way into Monday. There was nothing wrong with it. It’s making sure the next day that I don’t overload it too much.”
Given the success of defensive rookie of the year candidate Devin Bush and veteran Vince Williams’ return to health, Barron could see a reduced workload after playing nearly every snap against Seattle, San Francisco and Cincinnati.
After playing a 16-game season in four of his first five seasons, Barron hasn’t played a full schedule since 2016. He missed a combined six games in his final two years with the Rams.
With the bye week coming in Week 7, Barron is glad his absence will be just for the game against the Chargers.
“I hated it. It looked like everybody was having fun,” Barron said about the Steelers’ 24-17 victory. “It was a fun game, and I was just watching it. I hate missing games, so it most definitely was tough.”
Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.
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