With a need for more depth along the offensive line, the Pittsburgh Steelers are hitting the scouting trail quite hard with one month left until the 2024 NFL Draft.
There has been plenty of focus on the center and offensive tackle positions, especially as options early in the draft for the Steelers, but that hasn’t stopped them from looking late in the draft and from an undrafted free agency standpoint for help as well.
That includes Michigan State interior offensive lineman J.D. Duplain.
According to a report from @_MLFootball on Twitter Monday morning, the Steelers are among a handful of teams showing interest in Duplain, who has center and guard experience in the Big Ten with the Spartans.
Along with the Steelers, the San Francisco 49ers, Kansas City Chiefs, Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams are reportedly showing interest in Duplain.
Duplain started 47 career games for the Spartans, including 42 straight to close out his career. He played in 54 career games for Michigan State and saw logged0 3,007 career snaps, making him one of the most experienced offensive linemen in the 2024 NFL Draft class.
A team captain in 2023, Duplain was named an honorable mention All-Big Ten player, capping off three straight seasons with the accolade. He was also a two-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree during his career.
A four-star recruit coming out of Ohio, Duplain chose Michigan State over Ohio State, Minnesota, Missouri, Arkansas and others.
At his Pro Day at Michigan State on March 13, Duplain checked in at 6025, 300 pounds with 9 1/2-inch hands, 31 1/4-inch arms, a 76 5/8-inch wingspan and clocked a 5.39 40-yard dash, 30 reps on the bench, a 30-inch vertical jump and an 8.49 3-cone drill. He is projected as an undrafted free agent.
Steelers director of college scouting Dan Colbert attended Michigan State Pro Day on March 13.
