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Steelers' Week 7 Injury Report With Frank Velasquez

PITTSBURGH (93-7 THE FAN) -- In his weekly "VESLA 360 Injury Report" exclusively on 937thefan.com, former Pittsburgh Pirates trainer Frank Velasquez examines the Steelers' Week 7 injury report.

Velasquez first talks about Steelers' defensive lineman Steve McLendon's shoulder sprain, which will keep him out of the lineup Monday night against the Houston Texans.

"Anytime you hear 'sprain,' you're dealing with ligaments," said Velasquez, saying that sprains normally carry a longer recovery time with them than strains do."

He added that certain types of shoulder braces allow players with these types of injuries to return to play more quickly, meaning McLendon could return to the lineup next week.

"If they can get the discomfort under control, get it secure, brace, and then get him functional then, as we talked about in the past with the coaches and stuff that they're seeing and the player, what he's telling them -- if it matches up and he can play the position, then he could be out there sooner rather than later," said Velasquez.

Ryan Shazier is also questionable this week after missing the last four weeks with an MCL injury. Velasquez says four to six weeks of inactivity is appropriate for an MCL injury and that Shazier should return soon.

Click the audio link below to hear more from Velasquez on the Steelers and an injury to the Texans' top draft pick.

VESLA 360 Injury Report

(Photo Credit: Jared Wickerham/Getty Images)

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