According to a report, Steelers starting guard James Daniels is out for the season with a torn Achilles tendon

Pittsburgh Steelers veteran offensive lineman James Daniels is out for the season after suffering a torn Achilles tendon in Sunday's loss to the Indianapolis Colts, according to an ESPN report.

Daniels has been a starter at right guard since joining the Steelers via free agency in March 2022 and left Sunday's game after a play early in the first quarter. Daniels has only missed two games in the last three seasons. In 2022, he signed a three-year, $26.5 million contract.

Although Daniels was initially listed as “questionable” about returning to Sunday's game, he was later seen wearing a walking boot and on crutches.

Daniels was replaced in the lineup by Spencer Anderson, who had lost a starting gig at left guard in that game to rookie Mason McCormick. That left the Steelers with three players (including rookie center Zach Frazier) who combined to make exactly eight career NFL starts as the interior defensive lineman on their offensive line.

Daniels' injury is the latest setback for a unit that lost then-first-team center Nate Herbig to a season-ending shoulder injury in mid-August and lost veteran starting left guard Isaac Seumalo to a pectoral injury two weeks later He hasn't been able to play yet this season, and less than two weeks ago he learned that rookie starting right tackle Troy Fautanu would miss much of the season with a knee injury.

Also on injured reserve is Dylan Cook, last year's swing backup tackle.

Cook is eligible to begin practice this week and Seumalo returned to practice last week. Seumalo could return to action on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys.

Daniels' contract expires next spring and he was not expected to be re-signed by the Steelers. The hope and plan was that McCormick – a highly regarded fourth-round pick – could replace Daniels in 2025. The timeline for this plan has apparently been accelerated to begin immediately.