Pittsburgh Steelers assistant offensive line coach Isaac Williams was in attendance at the offensive line workouts at the Big 12 Pro Day today, which featured West Virginia center Zach Frazier.
You could see Williams in a video posted by the WVU Football Instagram account.
Frazier tested today after not testing at the NFL Combine earlier this month as he suffered a broken leg in West Virginia’s regular season finale against Baylor. Frazier crawled off the field to avoid a ten-second run off and helped West Virginia pull off the win.
Frazier ran a 5.24 40-yard dash and measured in at 6024 and 315 pounds, and overall his testing numbers were pretty average. But being able to test just months after his injury was an important step forward to show teams he’ll be ready for offseason workouts and the start of the season.
Williams presence there makes sense as all the Big 12 offensive linemen who were invited and able to workout did so today at the Pro Day, but it also helps connect the team to Frazier. In the video, it appeared he was talking to Frazier as well.
The Steelers have a clear need at center after releasing Mason Cole in late February, and the Steelers have yet to add to the position this offseason. Currently, Nate Herbig is slotted to play center, but he is lacking in experience at the position and wouldn’t be an ideal option for the team.
Pittsburgh is expected to target one of the top centers in the draft, be it Jackson Powers-Johnson out of Oregon, Duke’s Graham Barton, Sedrick Van Pran-Granger from Georgia, or Frazier. Frazier is a potential selection in the first round, but it’s more likely that the Steelers look to target him with the No. 51 overall pick, Pittsburgh’s second-round selection.
Frazier did not work out at the Combine and dealt with questions surrounding his medicals, so being able to take the field and workout to show teams he’s healthy should keep his draft stock around the same range, which is a late-first to second-round prospect, and probably closer to the second.
With a month to go, we’ll see if Frazier sees an improvement in his stock after showing his health and ability to work out today.
