The Pittsburgh Steelers got their tackle with the first-round selection of Troy Fautanu out of Washington. Often included in the top 15 prospects, he fell down to 20 for the Steelers to grab, reportedly, due to long-term injury concerns. Not unlike 2023 draft pick Darnell Washington, teams reportedly flagged him because of his knees.
Also, like Washington, however, Fautanu doesn’t share the concerns some teams had. He tore his ACL in college, and also dealt with a Lisfranc foot injury. However, the Steelers made it clear in their press conference they were comfortable with his medicals.
“We wouldn’t select [Troy Fautanu] if we weren’t comfortable with it, and I can’t speak for some of the stuff that’s put out there and what’s true and what’s not and what other people are saying”, head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters when asked about reports of injury concerns. “But we’re comfortable”.
For his part, Fautanu told reporters last night that “that knee thing” has not bothered him for years. “It’s going back to, I mean, you play football, play offensive line, if you come out playing football like for years and years and you don’t get injured, you’re like a pony. So, I understand the physicality that I do play with and sometimes things are gonna happen like that, but that doesn’t stop me from coming, showing up to work every single day and playing the way that I do play”.
As outsiders, we’re never going to have the facts when it comes to player medicals. But the Steelers more than many other organizations don’t seem to shy away from players with medical red flags. That applies equally to the draft as it does to free agency. They have somewhat of a hit-or-miss track record in both. They’ve signed players like Ladarius Green and Trai Turner and traded for Brandon Boykin and William Jackson III.
But they also took Heath Miller and Hines Ward in the draft with injury concerns. Granted, they also took Jarvis Jones, but his career trajectory had nothing to do with health concerns. As the 20th-overall pick, though, the Steelers obviously expect Fautanu to have quite a long career.
You can argue that anybody who has had a major knee injury before may have long-term injury concerns as athletes. You never prefer wear and tear, but many, many players have long careers after serious injuries.
It can be tougher on offensive and defensive linemen to deal with knee injuries because of the weight they carry. But Fautanu’s physique allows him to carry his weight well, and it seems as though he takes care of his body. The Steelers surely feel good about his willingness to manage whatever long-term concerns may exist as best he can.
