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Steelers LB Devin Bush: Rehab from torn ACL is 'going good' 4 months post-surgery

Feb. 25—Four months since he had surgery to repair a torn ACL, Devin Bush is optimistic he is on track for a healthy return next season.

The 22-year-old inside linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers provided an update on his recovery Thursday during a 15-minute question and answer session with fans.

"Rehab is going good," Bush said. "I'm on schedule. I'm feeling stronger week by week. I'm just trying to get ready physically for next year, especially for camp. I'm just staying positive about things and doing everything I can do possible to make myself one of the best players next year."

Five games into his second NFL season, Bush tore his ACL in the second quarter against the Cleveland Browns. He underwent surgery in late October.

The Steelers' first-round pick in 2019, Bush has spent the offseason rehabilitating his injury at UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. Earlier this week, he posted an Instagram video that showed Bush running on an underwater treadmill in 30-second intervals.

He and outside linebacker Bud Dupree, who also tore his ACL in December, are among the few Steelers players working out at the training complex at this time of the season. The time has allowed Bush to reflect on missing the final 11 games last season, plus the playoff loss to Cleveland.

"It's hard to be alone and watch football every Sunday and not being able to participate," he said. "A lot of motivation comes from that. As a competitor, coming back and being better is another motivator. Sitting there and being able to take everything in, to be able to put that energy somewhere else, you have to put that inside your rehab and everything you want to accomplish next year."

Before his injury, Bush had 26 tackles and one sack. He had played every snap on defense while wearing the green dot to relay communication signals to the rest of the defense. Robert Spillane replaced Bush, but he also was injured in the second half of the season, further weakening the depth at inside linebacker.

Without Bush, the Steelers improved to 11-0 before embarking on a late-season slide in which they lost four of their final five regular-season games and the playoff opener to the Browns.

"Anytime a starter goes down, it's going to have a hole in the team, and it's going to be hard to replace him," Bush said. "It's one of those things that is hard to account for. Who's to say the same thing would have happened if I had been playing or if we would have won the whole thing if I was playing? You never will know.

"The best thing I can do is put myself in the best shape physically for that never to happen again."

His workout partner, Dupree, is an unrestricted free agent who likely won't be back playing on a defense that allowed the third-fewest points and yards in the NFL last season. Bush could see other new faces on a defense that has other free agents in the secondary and potential salary-cap casualties in Joe Haden and Vince Williams.

"Of course, it's going to be a different team," Bush said. "Repetition is something we have to drill a lot — staying the course. As you can see last year, you may go 11-0 and be out in the first round. We have to take that into account and get over that hump."

Admitting he doesn't "get paid to make those decisions," Bush played along when he asked what position the Steelers needed to fill in the draft.

"If it was my team, I think O-line is something I would want to address," he said. "One of the greatest players to play the game, Maurkice Pouncey, retired, so of course you have to fill that void. That is something, if it was my team, that I would do."

Joe Rutter is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Joe by email at jrutter@triblive.com or via Twitter .