The Pittsburgh Steelers managed to snag a bookend offensive tackle in their second consecutive draft, landing Washington OT Troy Fautanu in the first round at 20th overall. He now joins a Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line that selected OT Broderick Jones a year prior on the first day of the draft, taking a tackle prospect with impressive athleticism and movement skills at the position. Fautanu appears to bring a similar skill set to Pittsburgh as an impressive athlete in his own right, running a 5.01 40-yard dash while posting an impressive 32.5″ vertical and a 9’5 broad.
While the testing numbers are nice, the tape speaks greater volumes regarding Fautanu and his movement skills as an offensive tackle. Tomlin talked about Fautanu’s athleticism on the move in the post-pick press conference, stating that he was impressed with how the Huskies ran their scheme thanks to the capability of Fautanu playing in space.
Going back through the tape, you see a player in Fautanu who is truly a menace on the move, having the combination of fluidity, quickness, and strength to make blocks in the open field with relative ease that most tackles struggle to consistently make. Watch this clip below against Oregon, where Fautanu pulls toward the sideline as the receivers block down on the defense, locating the defensive back that presents the last line of defense to stop the running back from getting into the end zone. Fautanu runs right into the defensive back’s chest with his shoulder, pushing him out of the play as the runner pushes through a defender at the goal line to get in for the touchdown.
Fautanu not only can pull out toward the sideline, but he is also capable of square pulling from the tackle spot across the line of scrimmage up the gap, like in this clip below against the Ducks. Watch as Fautanu opens up his hips on the snap of the ball and seamlessly runs across the line and leads up the hole, picking up the MIKE linebacker, thus allowing the runner to bounce the run to the outside, getting up the field to pick up first down yardage.
Regarding the screen game, Fautanu can be an absolute menace as he is nimble enough as an athlete to square up linebackers and defensive backs in the open field while also possessing the strength and power to overwhelm them at the point of attack. We see this impressive skill set on display below against the Wolverines in the National Championship Game as Fautanu chips on the defensive lineman before peeling off to get a body on the safety, which he buries into the ground in the first clip. In the second clip, watch as Fautanu starts his kick step into pass protection before taking off on the screen pass to the receiver, locating the linebacker in the middle of the field as he proceeds to get into the defender’s shoulder pads and wrestle him to the ground.
Fautanu has a knack for eyeing the big hit as a blocker, looking to drop bodies to the floor much like Drowning Pool states in their classic hit. Defensive backs are not a match for him in the open field if they can’t evade him, like in this clip below against the Ducks, where Fautanu helps on the defensive lineman before redirecting and manages to chase down the slot cornerback in space, leveling him to allow WR Rome Odunze to get upfield on the screen pass, giving him the space to pick up the first down and then some. Truly an athletic marvel at work.
Much like Broderick Jones impressed coaches with his ability to make blocks on the move coming out of Georgia, Fautanu does the same, and likely at a higher level, than Pittsburgh’s 2023 first-round selection. He is nimble enough to change his speed in the open field to properly square up defenders and prevent them from evading him while also having the finishing power to get the job done in a rather exhilarating fashion.
The Steelers now have two athletic tackles who can be people movers upfront as well as make plays out in space, a skill set that the team hasn’t possessed at the bookends in years. This will allow OC Arthur Smith to be more creative with his play calling, opening up the playbook to allow Pittsburgh to run their screen game as well as counter/trap game more effectively than in years past under Matt Canada. Being able to utilize this unique skill set, Fautanu brings to the table as a weapon in its own right, adding more versatility and excitement to what has been an underwhelming offensive attack.
