As the 2024 NFL Draft draws closer, teams, scouting departments and analysts are starting to solidify their final rankings via position and overall.
Players will start settling into place and teams will really feel good about where their boards are come the start of the first round next week in Detroit.
There will also be varying viewpoints on certain prospects, too, like Washington offensive lineman Troy Fautanu.
In a pre-draft conference call with reporters Wednesday, NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah stated that he knows one team views Fautanu as the top center in the draft. That falls in line with the comments that The Athletic’s Dane Brugler made in his draft guide regarding the standout offensive lineman having five-position versatility.
“…I think he’s got all the tackle tools, but he has that power and core strength where some people that have tackles in place, they’re like, ‘Dude, I could make this guy an All-Pro guard.’ And I know one team that feels like he could be the best center in the draft,” Jeremiah said regarding Fautanu, according to audio via the conference call. “So he’s a legit five-position guy.”
Some of that center talk and five-position versatility talk not only comes from his playing time in college, but also with his size.
Fautanu’s size has been in question throughout the pre-draft process regarding his ability to stick at left tackle. Fautanu measured in at 6036, 317 pounds with 34 1/2-inch arms at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine. The arm length is fantastic for the position, but the height is the concern for some, which has led to talk about kicking him inside.
During his time in college, Fautanu largely played left tackle. However, he also saw time at left guard and has been projected as a center in the NFL by some.
For Fautanu though, who was a first-team All-Pac 12 player, he views himself as a tackle, period, and views the talk of moving him inside as “lazy analysis.”
“I think I’m a tackle. Grouping me in a category with guards because of how tall I am, I honestly feel like it was a lazy narrative that grew legs for some reason. That’s lazy analysis,” Fautanu said during an interview with The Draft Network’s Justin Melo. “Just watch the tape. I played tackle at a high level…I truly feel like I played the tackle position at a legitimately high level.”
Fautanu did play the position at a high level. He was quite dominant in Washington’s run to the College Football Playoff Championship last season. He was a key pass blocker in front of quarterback Michael Penix Jr. and opened up massive rushing lanes for Washington overall.
The size is a concern though, whether he likes it and wants to believe it or not. The last tackle under 6-foot-4 to be drafted in the first round was Isaiah Wynn by the New England Patriots. Even Peter Skoronski, a dominant tackle in college, came in at 6040 and moved inside to guard in the NFL with the Tennessee Titans last season.
That move appears to be on the horizon for Fautanu. It could even be at center.
The Steelers have shown strong interest in Fautanu, hosting him for a pre-draft visit after having offensive line coach Pat Meyer at the Washington Pro Day and then meeting privately with Fautanu and his family at the Pro Day.
Pittsburgh reportedly views Duke’s Graham Barton as a center, and maybe there’s potential there for the Steelers, who have a glaring need at the pivot, to view Fautanu as one as well.
