STEELERS Kendall Simmons tears ACL, will miss the regular season

It was a tough blow for the lineman, who was diagnosed with diabetes last year.
LATROBE, Pa. (AP) -- Steelers lineman Kendall Simmons will miss the season because of a knee injury he sustained in practice Wednesday, one year after the offensive guard was diagnosed with diabetes and fought to return to the lineup.
Simmons woke up with extensive swelling around his right knee, and an MRI exam Thursday morning revealed a tear in the anterior cruciate ligament, team officials said.
The 25-year-old guard fell to the ground during practice Wednesday writhing in pain, but team officials believed it was only a mild sprain.
The diagnosis Thursday was tremendously bad news for the Steelers, who struggled all of last year to reconstruct their offensive line, but it was crushing news for Simmons, who lost more than 30 pounds before camp last year and struggled to maintain his weight.
Even with the diagnosis by team doctor James Bradley, Simmons held out hope that he could somehow return to the team this year, agent Eric Metz said.
"It's a testament to his character, his toughness," Metz said. "There was not a minute during the episode last season, or what he's going through now, when he's wallowed in self pity or made an excuse for anything."
Simmons will fly to Birmingham, Ala., next week for a second opinion from a specialist, Dr. James Andrews. But team officials said Thursday that knee surgery was also scheduled for Simmons next week.
"He's holding out hope that there's some way he can brace it up or do something along those lines to get out there and play, but it looks like there's a very slim chance of that," Metz said.
Line questions
Keydrick Vincent, a four-year veteran, is a possible replacement, yet the Steelers are heading into the season with some of the same instability that left the offensive line in disarray throughout 2003.
Coach Bill Cowher said injuries will not change the way the team prepares for their first game, less than a month away.
But he acknowledged that Simmons was having one of his best preseasons and it was a big loss.
"Unfortunately, he's worked very hard, he was in a great state of mind, and he's a great kid," Cowher said. "He's been dealt a lot of adversity over the last year. From last year up until this point, he's had to deal with the diabetes. He'll overcome it and become a stronger person because of it."
Injuries to the Steelers offensive line left quarterback Tommy Maddux vulnerable last year and contributed to the team having the league's second-worst running game. The team's five projected starters on offensive line were rarely on the field at the same time.
Injuries
During a morning news conference, Cowher read through a list of players who would not take the field Saturday in the first preseason home game.
Linebacker Kendrell Bell, who has been bothered by a nagging shoulder injury, will sit out the game against the Texans. The 2001 Defensive Rookie of the Year missed much of the 2002 season because of injuries.
He'll be joined on the bench by cornerback Terry Fair (hamstring), linebacker Clark Haggans (broken fingers), and defensive tackle Kendrick Clancy (calf).
The Steelers will likely welcome back all of the starting defensive backs, though cornerback Chad Scott was listed Thursday as probable with an abdominal strain.
Safety Chris Hope and cornerback Deshea Townsend did not play against Detroit last week, when the Lions converted four third-down plays on their first drive.
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