The Pittsburgh Steelers have placed a high priority on the offensive line over the course of the past two offseasons. They added two starters via free agency in 2022, and in the last months signed another veteran starter and used a first-round draft pick to add a tackle earmarked for the starting lineup, likely sooner rather than later.
The newest veteran is Isaac Seumalo, coming over after spending a lengthy career with the Philadelphia Eagles. He already has a number of familiar faces in the building, most notably fellow former Eagles linemen Nate Herbig and Le’Raven Clark, but also front office and scouting personnel Andy and Casey Weidl.
Seumalo, who confirmed that he has been working with the first team at left guard as expected, spoke about how he has been acclimating himself to working in Pittsburgh, with new teammates, in a new system yesterday. He credited one of last year’s new faces, center Mason Cole, for helping to make it easier.
“Mason I think is a very good player. Smart”, he said, via the team’s website. “At center you need a guy that’s not just smart but can vocalize that to everybody and see everybody’s perspective on each play and how that operates, so it’s been a good transition”.
Cole started every game last season for the Steelers, all at center, alongside fellow free agent signing James Daniels at right guard. Now he has Seumalo on the other side of them, all three with center capability, and thus the perspective of a center and how he views the game.
That familiarity should help foster the necessary rapport for the new-look interior trio to work together at a high level. Seumalo has frequently been praised for his football intelligence himself, especially from former teammate Jason Kelce, the Pro Bowl center for the Eagles, also regarded as one of the smartest linemen in the game.
Cole was on hand to greet Seumalo when he came into the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex to sign his contract, so they got to know each other right away. To the best of my knowledge, they had no prior connection before the latter signed with the Steelers earlier this offseason; the same goes for Daniels.
It will be helpful that Cole and Daniels now have a year in Pat Meyer’s system, as the offensive line group had a learning curve to contend with as the players worked to learn what their new position coach wanted them to do. Seumalo should be smart enough to be able to handle it, but to have capable veterans on hand who already play it should only make it easier.
The 2023 season really offers the promise of the Steelers potentially having the best offensive line they’ve had in years, if all the pieces actually fall into place. It might be a lot to ask, but it’s very doable. The fact that all of the veterans seem to be on the same page at this early stage can only be taken as a positive and welcome sign.
