There was no question heading into the 2024 NFL draft that the Pittsburgh Steelers desperately needed to improve their offensive line. The play of center Mason Cole and both starting offensive tackles Chuks Okorafor and Dan Moore Jr. were subpar. But luckily last season, Pittsburgh drafted offensive tackle Broderick Jones in the first round and when the time was right, benched Okorafor in favor of the then-rookie and things were looking up.
Now this time around in the 2024 NFL draft, the Steelers took two more huge steps by selecting offensive tackle Troy Fautnau and center Zach Frazier. Which, if both guys play as expected will completely solidify this unit.
Pro Football Focus talked about the most improved offensive lines in the NFL after the draft, and to no one’s surprise, they had the Steelers right at the top. Here’s what they had to say about them:
On paper, the offensive line rebuild the Steelers put together through the 2024 NFL Draft could go down as one of the best ever. They used three selections on the unit, all inside the top 120 picks in the draft. It started with Washington’s Troy Fautanu, whose 88.2 PFF pass-blocking grade in 2023 ranked fifth among FBS tackles. He can start at either tackle or guard.
Pittsburgh followed that up by adding West Virginia’s Zach Frazier to man the middle of the offensive line. He allowed just a 2.3% pressure rate over the past three seasons. And then there is South Dakota State’s Mason McCormick. While he played at a smaller school, he earned a 90.3 PFF grade over the past two seasons, dominating at that level.
Under new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, the Steelers are going to want to pound the football on the ground and run play action off of it. Smith also likes to utilize the zone read to add an extra twist to the run game. This group has a very high ceiling and thanks to veteran guards Isaac Seumalo and James Daniels, the leadership is there as well.
