The Pittsburgh Steelers have once again overhauled its offensive line in one offseason. Perhaps not quite to the extent of last year when factors outside their control forced their hand. Maurkice Pouncey’s retirement, David DeCastro’s recurring ankle injuries, Alejandro Villanueva’s price tag. Regardless, the team has signed two offensive linemen the first week of free agency in Mason Cole and James Daniels, along with re-signing Chukwuma Okorafor.
So we know the names who will make up the offensive line room. But more importantly, who starts (and who doesn’t), and where do they all line up? A good O-line isn’t just a collection of individual talent, but a group coming together and playing as one. It’s a “one fails, we all fail” mentality.
Right now, it’s hard to fully project where each guy will align and to hear the players tell it, they’re not totally sure either.
Let’s break down a couple of the ways things could look Week 1. The first, and to me, most likely configuration.
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Left Tackle | Dan Moore Jr. |
| Left Guard | Kevin Dotson |
| Center | Mason Cole |
| Right Guard | James Daniels |
| Right Tackle | Chukwuma Okorafor |
The tackle spots appear to be the most settled. Moore on the left side, where he improved as a rookie, with Okorafor on the right side. He isn’t an ideal right tackle, but he didn’t sign a three-year deal to compete for a spot along this offensive line. He’ll start.
The interior is where things get interesting. Daniels, of course, is going to start. It’s just a matter of where. He’s played and played well at right guard the last two seasons, including all 17 games in 2021, so it’s less likely the team will move him after viewing him through that lens. He may be a natural center who played there at Iowa, but he’s logged about 1,000 more snaps at either guard spot than the pivot in the NFL.
Cole is not locked in to start but he was paid well on the first day of free agency. Not many linemen who sign on the first day of the tampering period making over $5 million per year coming to a struggling offensive line who is going to sit on the bench. Cole has played all three interior spots but most of his work has come at center, and he confirmed yesterday he’s most comfortable in the middle. So we’ll slot him in there.
Left guard would become a debate between Kevin Dotson and Kendrick Green. Neither guy should be handed a spot but Dotson would likely have a leg up. He’s bigger, has played better, and Green makes more sense as an interior swingman with his center ability, something Dotson does not have.
But it’s not the only possibility. Here’s another.
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Left Tackle | Dan Moore Jr. |
| Left Guard | Kendrick Green |
| Center | James Daniels |
| Right Guard | Kevin Dotson |
| Right Tackle | Chukwuma Okorafor |
Same two tackles but a totally different-looking interior. Daniels kicks to center, where he is certainly capable of playing, with Green moving back left guard and Dotson flipping back to right guard. This puts everyone in their college positions before the NFL came in and moved them. Granted, that means moving guys from where they have recently been playing, Daniels at RG for two seasons, Dotson at LG for two seasons, but these sort of resets the line.
Here’s another scenario.
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Left Tackle | Dan Moore Jr. |
| Left Guard | Kevin Dotson |
| Center | Kendrick Green |
| Right Guard | James Daniels |
| Right Tackle | Chukwuma Okorafor |
Daniels stays at right guard and Dotson at left guard with Cole going to the bench. If Green develops and grows in meaningful ways, and understands he was thrown into the fire as a rookie and completely mismanaged by the team, Cole may become the expensive, versatile backup. That’s not my expectation, but I can’t completely rule it out.
Or it could look like…
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Left Tackle | Dan Moore Jr. |
| Left Guard | Kevin Dotson |
| Center | James Daniels |
| Right Guard | Mason Cole |
| Right Tackle | Chukwuma Okorafor |
Keeping Doston at LG, moving Daniels to center, and Cole to right guard. I’m not sure what the real reason to do this would be other than if the team really wanted Daniels at center, but it could work this way.
Finally…
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Left Tackle | Dan Moore Jr. |
| Left Guard | James Daniels |
| Center | Mason Cole |
| Right Guard | Kevin Dotson |
| Right Tackle | Chukwuma Okorafor |
Daniels has actually played more left guard than any other position in the NFL, and it would move Dotson back to his more natural position. Cole steps in at center (you could also put Green in there too and send Cole to the bench). This idea is less thought of but also makes a fair amount of sense.
Of course, most of this won’t be settled until the summer through training camp and preseason. And injuries can change the landscape of this conversation. Going into last year, we assumed Okorafor would start at LT and Zach Banner at RT. Instead, Okorafor went back to RT with rookie Dan Moore Jr. on the left side. There’s options, flexibility, and more talent than there’s been. It’s not the end. But it’s a start.
