Ben Roethlisberger took a positive first step toward returning to the field on Thursday. The Steelers QB jogged off the practice field, guard Ramon Foster confirmed, per ESPN. Roethlisberger is reportedly progressing well from a sprained left MCL.

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He's just not progressing well enough to feature Monday night, no matter how hard he's pushing the limits.

Teammates have gone as far as teasing his efforts in practice.

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"Don't do that, 7," Foster said.

Michael Vick -- who is playing in Roethlisberger's absence -- opted for a more mature approach. The former Falcons icon sad it was "absolutely good" to see his teammate tossing the ball around at practice.

As it stands, Roethlisberger is examining his MCL sprain and bone bruise on a week-to-week basis. Even a timetable for an Oct. 25 return is still in question.

"What we're trying not to do is put a time on it and just go week-by-week," he said, per SI.com. "To me, that's the better way and maybe the more optimistic way to look at it. Rather than put a number on it, let's just take it one week at a time."

Unfortunately for the Steelers, they'll be subjected to Vick's arm Monday night, robbing us of another Roethlisberger-Rivers showdown.

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