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When is Michael Pittman Jr. coming back? Will Michael Pittman Jr. play again this season? Read about Michael Pittman Jr.'s return date and injury updates for 2026.
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. (foot) played just one game for his new team before suffering a foot injury and being held out of Week 2.
Pittman had an excellent season with the Indianapolis Colts in 2025, especially before their starting quarterback, Daniel Jones, went down.
He could potentially be a high-upside player for fantasy football in 2026, but what's the latest on his foot injury? Let's dive into that and his fantasy football outlook for 2026!
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Michael Pittman Jr. Injury Update for Fantasy Football
Pittman actually returned to practice for Week 3 which is a great sign. On both Wednesday and Thursday, he participated in practice in a limited fashion. He's clearly working his way back well, but his status for Week 3 is still questionable right now.
We'll have to look to Friday's news to see if he upgrades to a full practice. If he does, he's very likely to play, though he could still have restrictions. If he logs another limited practice or gets downgraded to DNP, his chances are much slimmer.
Steelers downgraded WR Michael Pittman Jr. to out for Sunday’s game vs New England due to his foot injury. pic.twitter.com/YIydkOW0NL
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 19, 2026
Apparently, he's dealing with a flare-up of a plantar fascia inflammation issue. NFL Insider Adam Schefter reports that it's a very painful injury, and one that he's been dealing with for some time now, dating back to last season. Unfortunately, we could see it be a problem for him on and off for the rest of this season.
He's been durable throughout his career, so he shouldn't miss a ton of time considering the severity of the injury.
Michael Pittman Jr. Fantasy Football Outlook
The Steelers offense simply doesn't look that good right now. That's bound to happen when your quarterback is 42 years old and clearly on the decline. The Steelers hired head coach Mike McCarthy to reunite him with his favorite quarterback for one last season, but it's not going swimmingly so far.
Rodgers is averaging just over 200 passing yards in his first two games, and has thrown one total touchdown and one interception. He also fumbled twice in Week 2, losing one of those fumbles. Pittsburgh's offensive line isn't playing well either, both as pass blockers and run blockers, and they don't have much of a run game.
Pittman is probably the best receiver on the roster, for what it's worth. The Steelers' WR1 is technically DK Metcalf, but he's still plagued by bad drops and an inability to make contested catches. He missed multiple opportunities for huge plays in the first two games, and has only gained 67 yards on his 19 targets.
Michael Pittman Jr. 80 REC, 784 YDS, 7 TDs 2025 Season Highlights.
Pittman joins the Steelers.pic.twitter.com/cYCIJOnwGS https://t.co/geFHJ1Ix7u
— Football Performances (@NFLPerformances) March 9, 2026
Pittman could challenge for the highest target share for a receiver on this offense, but he needs to get healthy first. His injury being a flare-up of something pre-existing isn't great news. It may be something he's forced to manage for the rest of the season, which would hurt his upside.
A fully healthy Pittman would likely be on the field for around 90 percent of his team's offensive snaps per game, and gradually build more trust with Rodgers before becoming a weekly target hog.
SHEESH PITT
📺 CBS pic.twitter.com/PCfL7tOhI5
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) October 26, 2025
Rodgers' frustrations with Metcalf aren't much of an issue with Pittman, who regularly makes strong catches even in tight coverage. He should be the highest-targeted player in this offense when healthy. That doesn't mean it will happen, of course, but we should chase that upside and buy him in fantasy football leagues.
Who Should I Start Tool
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Week 3 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players: Michael Pittman Jr., DK Metcalf. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 3.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, player news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 3 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 3 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 3 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 3 for Michael Pittman Jr., DK Metcalf:
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