The Pittsburgh Steelers' offensive line looked like it was going to be a much different and improved unit after the draft in April. General Manager Omar Khan drafted Troy Fautanu, Zach Frazier and Mason McCormick. The Steelers' offensive line desperately needed upgrades at tackle and center and that's exactly what Khan did via the draft with Fautanu and Frazier. However, much of the excitement about the team's new-look offensive line has slowly faded as the regular season approaches. Broderick Jones, 2023 first-round pick, struggled in preseason action and both Fautanu and guard Isaac Seumalo are dealing with injuries.
After Nate Herbig, Pittsburgh's potential starting center, suffered a season-ending injury, Frazier stepped in as the team's Week 1 starting center. Frazier starting at center could certainly be a good thing, but outside of him and right guard James Daniels, there are a lot of uncertainties on the offensive line just a week before the regular season starts.
Both tackle positions are a concern as Fautanu is working his way back from a knee injury and is listed as the backup left tackle behind Dan Moore Jr., and Jones' struggles at right tackle in the preseason weren't pretty.
Another big question mark on the offensive line is at left guard. Seumalo, who is arguably Pittsburgh's best lineman, is expected to miss time with a pectoral injury. On the Steelers' depth chart, Spencer Anderson is listed as the backup left guard.
Anderson was the 251st pick in the 2023 NFL Draft and didn't start any games during his rookie year. Instead of an offensive line with solid guards, a second-round pick center and two first round tackles, The Steelers might open the season with Moore and a seventh-round pick starting on the line. Gerry Dulac believes that if Seumalo's injury was season-ending, there would be a significant position change on the offensive line.
"If Seumalo's injury required surgery and caused him to miss the entire season, it is likely the Steelers would have moved Fautanu to guard."
Moving Fautanu from tackle to guard in his rookie season would potentially stunt his growth as a tackle in the NFL. While Fautanu did play a little bit of guard in college, he was drafted to play tackle and, seeing how Jones has handled playing right tackle in the NFL after spending his college career on the left side, Pittsburgh should try to keep Fautanu in one spot.
Steelers Are Better Off Letting Fautanu Develop At One Position
Transitioning from college football to the NFL is hard enough as it is. The speed of the game is faster and learning a new playbook isn't easy. NFL rookies have from late April to early September to make those adjustments and growing at a specific position on top of that is a hefty task.
Fautanu moving to guard to fill Seumalo's role, while recovering from a knee injury in his rookie season, would be extremely difficult. Even moving from one tackle spot to the other is difficult and Fautanu is supposed to be the right tackle for the next decade.
Eventually, the Steelers will want both of their first-round pick tackles to be in the starting lineup. As of right now, Fautanu is listed at left tackle and Jones at right tackle. That is not going to be permanent and they are expected to flip sides, but either way, drafting offensive linemen and then having them learn new positions is a strange tactic that hurts their development.
The Steelers Week 1 game against the Atlanta Falcons will be a good test for the offensive line and hopefully provides a different result up front than last season and the 2024 preseason.
