Steelers Rumors: Ramon Foster Avoids Knee Surgery; Could Be Out 4-5 Weeks

Pittsburgh Steelers guard Ramon Foster did not suffer any ligament damage in his knee after a scary hyperextension during training camp.

Aditi Kinkhabwala‏ of NFL Network reported Foster will instead miss just four or five weeks of action. That puts him in line to be available for the Steelers' regular-season opener against the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 9.

Foster, 32, was carted off the field Saturday in what looked like a potential season-ending situation. Quarterback Ben Roethlisberger rode on the cart with Foster as he left the field. 

“Unfortunately, it’s a part of the game,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told reporters. “I’m not going to speculate. I’m simply going to make the necessary adjustments accordingly. More importantly, work our tails off to make sure we’re making this as safe as we can for them through this process.”

Foster has started at least 14 games in every season since 2011. He's missed two games each of the last two seasons.

“Ramon has been doing this for a long time and doing it at a high level,” Tomlin said. “He’s a core member of the group, obviously.”

B.J. Finney will take over with the first unit while Foster is out of the lineup and start if his recovery takes longer than expected.