Steady.
That’s the easiest way to describe Pittsburgh Steelers veteran center Mason Cole. He’s not flashy, won’t blow anyone away on film, and certainly won’t be considered one of the best centers in the NFL.
He’s just steady though and was the anchor of the Steelers’ offensive line in 2022, quietly emerging as a leader on and off the field for the young Steelers’ offense.
So, it’s no surprise that Cole wasn’t ranked inside the top 10 of the center rankings in the NFL from Pro Football Focus’ Gordon McGuinness Tuesday morning. What was surprising though was Cole landing outside of the top 20, coming in at No. 22 overall in the rankings, behind the likes of Las Vegas Raiders center Andre James and Minnesota Vikings center Garrett Bradbury outside of the top 20.
“Cole struggled in Arizona in his first three seasons in the league but was pretty solid in his first season with the Steelers last year. His 67.1 PFF grade ranked 12th in the league among centers, though his 63.8 PFF pass-blocking grade was tied for 24th, so there is still a fair amount of improvement to be made,” McGuinness writes regarding Cole in his top 32 center rankings for PFF.com.
Cole was a steady presence for the Steelers this past season, as I’ve pointed out before. According to PFF, he was guilty of allowing just two sacks on 1,114 snaps, many of which he played hurt. He’s as tough as they come, battling an ankle and foot injury throughout the 2022 season. He started all 17 games as the Steelers’ center after logging more time at guard with the Vikings in 2021. In college at Michigan, he bounced between playing left tackle and center, a man who has always been on the move.
But, in Pittsburgh, Cole seems to have found his home at center.
Having Cole as the vocal leader of the offensive line showed its worth during the season’s final stretch. In the first seven games of the season, the Steelers produced just 87.8 yards per game, well below the league average. However, in the final 11 games, they bumped that number up to 132 yards per game finishing 16th overall in the league with a final rushing average of 121.9.
Cole was a key part in that resurgence from the Steelers’ offensive line, providing that steady presence while adding some physicality to the group. He held up extremely well in pass protection in front of rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett, too, and developed a strong bond with Pickett.
Though he’s not the flashiest and certainly won’t generate many headlines or be a household name outside of Pittsburgh, having him outside of the top 20 in the NFL at the position is a bit of a miss from PFF. He should be right around that 17-19 range. For what it’s worth, Cole was the 12th-highest graded center in football last season at 67.1 overall, in front of a number of names ranked ahead of him in McGuinness’ rankings.
