Pittsburgh Steelers Might Have an Offensive Tackle Dilemma

Many NFL teams would love to be in the Pittsburgh Steelers shoes right now. They have made it apparent in these last two drafts that they needed to rebuild their offensive line. The selection of Broderick Jones 14th overall marked the highlight of last year’s draft. This year, the Steelers stayed put at 20th overall and were elated to draft Washington tackle Troy Fautanu. The question remains: which side will each of these tackles play on, and does Fautanu start from day one? Or does Mike Tomlin let him learn behind Dan Moore Jr. and Jones?

Drafting for Strength: The Pittsburgh Steelers Offensive Tackle Revamp

Broderick Jones

The Steelers drafted Jones as a left tackle out of Georgia, where he started all 13 games in his redshirt sophomore season, earning AP 1st-team All-SEC honors. When the Steelers drafted Jones in the 2023 draft, everyone thought he would become the starting left tackle of the future. Despite the hype for Jones, he started the year on the sidelines as the backup tackle for Moore and Chuks Okorafor. Mike Tomlin is known for letting rookies get acclimated to the NFL before immediately starting them. Tomlin followed a similar approach for Joey Porter Jr. last year, not starting him until week 8. Jones served as the primary backup tackle until week four when he started for an injured Moore for two games. He played tremendously, not allowing a sack over his first 160 snaps. Even after this stellar play, Jones went back to the bench when Moore was healthy. In week 9, the Steelers finally named Jones as a starter at right tackle, replacing Okorafor. He never looked back and started the rest of the season, learning a brand-new position at right tackle. Jones only played 34 snaps at Georgia as a right tackle and never played it in high school. He had a stellar rookie campaign, only allowing 4 sacks and committing 2 penalties, finishing the year with a 60.7 PFF Grade.

Dan Moore Jr.

Moore has drawn a lot of criticism from Steelers faithful because of his poor play, especially last season. Moore was drafted 128th overall, as a rookie he started all 16 games at left tackle, allowing 7.5 sacks. He followed up his rookie season by starting all 17 games, allowing 5.5 sacks. Last year he gave up the same number of sacks. Through 3 years, Moore has been durable, only missing 2 games. He has also shown he can be an asset in run blocking. The downsides for Moore are obvious: he is not an elite athlete and still struggles pass blocking against elite edge defenders. He has also admitted he is uncomfortable playing on the right side of the line. Moore is strictly a left tackle so far in his NFL career. To put Moore’s play last season into perspective, PFF analysts graded him as the worst pass-blocking tackle in the league. His finished the year with a 39.7 grade.

Troy Fautanu

Lastly, the 20th overall pick from Washington, Fautanu. He was a two-year starter at Washington and was regarded as one of the best tackles in the draft. Many scouts believe if tackle does not work out for him because of his height, he could transition into an elite guard. Due to his elite athleticism and speed off the ball. Mike Martz, best known for his role as the offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams during their 1999 Super Bowl win when their offense was dubbed the Greatest Show on Turf, currently works for the 33rd team and analyzed Fautanu’s college tape.

Pittsburgh Steelers Draft Troy Fautanu: 2024 NFL Draft Film Breakdown (youtube.com)

He thinks Fautanu has the best technique in college with amazing footwork and some of the best hands he has seen from a college player. At only 6ft 4, Fautanu lacks height, but his 34-inch arm length helps him play tackle at an elite level. Scouts have only highlighted two real negatives in Fautanu’s game: his 14 penalties in the last 2 years and his susceptibility to being overpowered by bigger defenders.  Fautanu will always get to his assigned spot and will get his hat on his defender, but whether he can stay engaged and drive his defender is the biggest question.

Starting Outlook for Week 1

As referenced earlier, Tomlin has no problem bringing rookies along slowly. Jones didn’t become a full-time starter until week 9, and Porter did not become a full-time starter until week 8. Steelers fans want Fautanu to start right away, but there is a scenario where Moore starts at least the beginning of the year at left tackle and Jones starts at right tackle. Gerry Dulac, the Steelers insider for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, hosted his weekly chat on Wednesday and answered a question about who the starting tackles will be in week 1. He answered, “Probably the same as last year, at least to start the season. Unless they trade Dan Moore,” Dulac wrote.