It’s easy to see Dan Moore Jr. remain with the starters over the first two days of OTAs. Troy Fautanu and Broderick Jones working around him, Jones flip-flopping between both sides while Moore keeps doing his thing on the left side. While Moore held off Jones last season, understand how the Steelers operate. This time of year, veterans get the nod over rookies. The best example of this is Maurkice Pouncey.
The Steelers’ first round pick in 2010, Pouncey was not the team’s starter from literal Day 1. While he became the starter by Week 1 of the regular season, in his first OTA practices, he wasn’t. In fact, he wasn’t even playing center. Pouncey began his career at right guard, playing there in the spring while veteran Justin Hartwig started in the middle.
It’s a moment I had forgotten about until coming across an ESPN article highlighting Pouncey’s first few weeks in Pittsburgh.
“Steelers coach Mike Tomlin termed guard “a position where you receive information instead of giving it,” referring to the blocking adjustments for which the center is principally responsible.
Pouncey conceded he misses making the blocking calls on every play, but as Hartwig’s primary backup, he still must learn them.”
A center at Florida, Pouncey hadn’t played guard since his freshman year with the Gators. Of course, you know the rest of the story. Pouncey became the Week 1 starting center, the Steelers releasing Hartwig just before the season began. Pouncey would anchor the middle for the next decade, the next great Steelers center with a borderline Hall of Fame career.
All of that is to preach patience along the offensive line. Even for myself. This is a process and mid-May is merely the first few steps. For someone like Zach Frazier, and it’s unclear where he is in the current pecking order, and the other rookies, they’ll have to work their way up the ladder.
The good news is Pittsburgh – and the NFL – is more open to playing rookies as soon as they’re ready instead of a mandatory year of sitting and learning. If Frazier earns the coaches’ trust, he’ll start. Ditto with Fautanu. Based on their play and experience, that should happen sooner than later. Possibly by Week 1, just like Pouncey.
