Let’s start with what we know. We know the Pittsburgh Steelers were high on Washington OT Troy Fautanu and were thrilled to get him with the 20th overall selection. We know, by Omar Khan’s words following the pick, that he was sweating out whether or not Fautanu, a projected Top 15 selection, would actually fall into their laps sitting in the middle of the first round.
But I think we know exactly where Fautanu ranked on their board. He was the No. 7 player on their board. Here’s how.
I love listening to draft calls. It’s one of the best parts of draft weekend. Teams, Pittsburgh or otherwise, call up these players, asking if they’re ready to join their team. The excitement and the emotion, it’s just awesome. Go listen to the Rams call Braden Fiske, who then talks to his Florida State teammate Jared Verse, drafted by the Rams one round earlier, and them realizing they get to be teammates again. That’s just special. You don’t have to be a Steelers fan to appreciate that. I literally went back to re-watch it as I’m writing this. And you should, too.
So, I spent Saturday night watching the NFL’s video of each draft call. Of course, that included Mike Tomlin’s conversation with Fautanu. I had already listened to it, and we shared it on the site, but in the craziness of the draft, there wasn’t much time to really tune in and appreciate the call in a quiet moment. Listening back, something caught my eye. Or really, my ear.
In the background of Tomlin’s call is Senior Scouting Assistant Kelvin Fisher. He turns and seems to call the attention of Mark Sadowski, Director of Player Scouting, and says something to him. And it sounds crystal clear.
“Seven out of 20.”
I’ve spliced the clip below with the audio boosted to make Fisher’s words as audible as possible.
“Seven out of 20.”
As Fisher says it, the man to his left pumps his fist. You can’t see his face in the above clip (but you can in the full video) but that’s Director of College Scouting Dan Colbert. And Fisher, clearly happy, claps his hands at the end.
While there’s no guarantee, that sure sounds like Fisher is talking about where Fautanu ranked on their board. What else would “seven out of 20” mean that would have the scouting staff excited and someone like Colbert, whom Fisher didn’t direct the comment at, immediately react so positively? If you’re reacting to getting your seventh-best player at No. 20, that whole room is going to be happy.
We know how the Steelers make their first-round pick. As Tomlin outlined during the team’s pre-draft press conference last Monday, they rank their board by the best players, 1-20. Whoever is the top name available when they get on the clock, that’s their man.
“We mock it for us if that’s what you’re asking,” Tomlin said when asked if they build out their list of 20 players, noting they no longer do mock drafts for other teams given how unpredictable and ultimately useless that exercise is.
When asked to clarify if the Steelers board consists of the 20 players they think they can draft or just the 20 best players overall, Tomlin confirmed it was the best. I’m betting they take quarterback off. Mark Gorscak said they did under Colbert, and Khan acknowledged they weren’t drafting a quarterback in the first round this year. So their list was probably the top 20 non-quarterbacks of the draft.
Clearly, the fact that he was their pick tells us they were high on Fautanu. But there’s already been reporting that the team thought he was one of the best players in the draft. Gerry Dulac tweeted that Fautanu was in their top ten and the second-best tackle behind Notre Dame’s Joe Alt, drafted fifth overall by the Los Angeles Chargers.
In their post-pick conference, Khan sounded exhausted just from the watch and wait of Fautanu being passed up by the top 19 teams (especially in such an offense-heavy draft) and falling to Pittsburgh.
“I would say that he was a player that we had rated really high up on the board, and he was one of the guys that we were hoping would be there and that we were targeting,” Khan said of Fautanu. “We just felt really good about it. He’s the player we wanted.”
All of this tracks with Fisher’s “seven out of 20” comment. I haven’t seen their board (though if Omar Khan would like to email it over, just let me know), and I can’t guarantee that was the context of the conversation. It is sorta funny for one scout to tell another where the team had him ranked. I’m sure Sadowski is well aware. But Tomlin also made mention they immediately got on the phone to call Fautanu – “we couldn’t wait, that’s why we got you on the phone so early” – so you’re probably getting a look at the room react in real-time to landing Fautanu. Fisher, understandably, is excited to get a guy rated so highly lower in the first round. I’m sure that doesn’t happen every draft. Most times, you might be getting your No. 16 player at No. 20. You’re still happy with the pick, but you’re getting roughly what you expected.
None of this is breaking giant news here. The Steelers like their first-round draft pick. You’re not getting out of your seat for that. But if my interpretation is correct, and all the circumstantial evidence suggests it is (the Steelers picking off their Top 20 board, Khan saying how anxious he was seeing if Fautanu would fall, Dulac’s tweet about him being top ten), then Troy Fautanu *was* the No. 7 player on their board. Higher than Graham Barton, Quinyon Mitchell, Terrion Arnold, Brian Thomas, and all the other top names who went off in that range.
Pittsburgh just got their seventh-best player, without having to trade, with the 20th overall pick. That’s gotta make the organization feel really good. By the reactions of Khan, Tomlin, and Fisher, they’re thrilled.
