PITTSBURGH, Aug. 25 (UPI) -- Veteran wide receiver Hines Ward of the Pittsburgh Steelers will miss the balance of the preseason and is highly-doubtful for the team's regular season opener Sept. 9 after undergoing an emergency appendectomy Friday.
Ward complained of nausea when he arrived at the airport and Saturday remained at UPMC-Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, where he had been airlifted, while the team was in Detroit and won its contest over the Lions, 34-22.
The surgery was deemed successful, but Coach Bill Cowher was cautious about the near future because the situation could have been much worse.
"It was a very good procedure," Cowher said. "It was not ruptured. It was very clean."
Ward, drafted in 1998, was a quarterback in college at the University of Georgia, but in the NFL, he has become one of the league's most prolific wideouts. Last season, he was a Pro Bowl choice for the first time after snaring 94 passes for 1,003 yards and four scores.
In his four years, he has caught 218 passes for 2,559 yards and 15 touchdowns. He has never missed a regular season game because of injury.
