When you come into the league as a late seventh-round pick, your odds of making a notable impact in your first season are often slim…let alone securing a spot on the active 53-man roster.
This is the situation rookie OL Spencer Anderson finds himself in heading into his first season in the league, after being selected 251st overall in the final round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers with their final draft choice.
Anderson is an experienced offensive lineman making his transition from college to the pros and he started 12 games at RG, 11 at RT, four at LT, and five at C while at the University of Maryland. While his tape is fairly average in terms of his prowess as a run blocker and pass protector, the main trait that made Anderson attractive to Pittsburgh was his versatility. Last season, Anderson logged 24 snaps at LG, successfully playing all five positions during his tenure in college. That versatility is something that has stood out thus far to his teammates during OTAs, including OT Dan Moore Jr.
“He’s shown that he can play pretty much all five (O-line positions),” Dan Moore Jr. said on Anderson in a story by Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I had no idea he could snap until I saw him taking some snaps after practice one day, and I was just like, ‘Alright, dude, you can snap!’ And he was like, ‘Yeah, I can.’ Obviously, those guys are much needed in the league and especially in this organization. Having a guy who can play all five positions, big respect from me because it is extremely hard to do.”
Given the depth of the offensive line and the number of quality guys on the roster, Anderson’s versatility to play multiple positions is going to be his calling card to making the roster as the team’s eighth or ninth OL. While he has experience playing tackle and could play there in a pinch, Anderson’s best positional fit in the league is likely inside at either guard or center. OG looks pretty full right now on the depth chart with Isaac Seumalo, James Daniels, Kevin Dotson, and Nate Herbig all in tow, but backup center is wide open with Kendrick Green on thin ice heading into Year Three and Ryan McCollum having done little himself in the league thus far.
Moore understands the difficulty playing multiple positions, telling reporters that playing RT after playing exclusively LT for a majority of his college career is like wiping your butt with the opposite hand. Seeing Anderson snap well and understanding the current state of the roster, Moore recognizes that the backup center job is likely Anderson’s best bet for making the roster over Green, who has tried and failed at both guard and center during his first two seasons.
He still needs to prove himself in training camp and in the preseason, but Anderson should have a good shot of making the practice squad at worst with a reasonable chance to make the 53-man roster. A Kevin Dotson trade would only help his chances, but thanks to his versatility and experience playing all five spots on the OL, Anderson has an advantage over Green and McCollum in that aspect as a rookie looking to stick in the NFL.
