Pittsburgh Steelers guard Chris Kemoeatu isn’t a doctor, but he has commented on center Maurkice Pouncey’s injury. Kemoeatu said Wednesday that the rookie center’s left high ankle sprain will keep him out of Super Bowl XLV. Pouncey’s linemate, via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

“We are definitely sad that he won’t be able to be with us in the Super Bowl. Definitely I feel bad for him. We just have to win it for him. We know how big this is for him and him not being able to play is definitely motivating for us to go out there and get that ring for him.

We’ve known that Pouncey has been seen wearing a cast, and that he appeared on Pittsburgh’s latest injury report as being held out of practice with an ankle injury.

But Pouncey himself has insisted he’ll play in the game, drawing on his previous experience with a similar injury in making that pronouncement. And the word of a teammate is by no means final and official.

If the Pro Bowler can’t go, he’ll be replaced by Doug Legursky, as he was in the AFC Championship Game. Against a team with a pass rush as aggressive as Green Bay’s, offensive line shuffles would be a very serious problem, no matter how good the replacements are.