The Pittsburgh Steelers have wrapped up their offseason program with the last practice of mandatory minicamp taking place earlier today. Offseason training activities and minicamp are a good time to set expectations and start to install any changes in the playbook. They should also give the players a decent idea of the upcoming camp competitions they will be a part of.
Earlier today, first-round rookie OT Troy Fautanu stated his expectation to open training camp at right tackle. Then we received a pretty clear message backing that up from general manager Omar Khan during an appearance on 93.7 The Fan’s The PM Team .
He was asked pretty bluntly if Fautanu will be the right tackle for the team.
“I would say that is true,” Khan said.
Prior to the draft in which Fautanu was selected, Khan made things pretty clear that they drafted Broderick Jones last year to play left tackle and that he will eventually end up there. This came after his rookie season in which Jones started 11 games, including the playoffs, at right tackle and just one at left tackle.
Fautanu is entering the league with 29 starts at left tackle during his time at the University of Washington. That is what created some level of uncertainty because both players are young and have most of their experience on the left side.
In order for Fautanu to be the Week 1 starter, he will have to prove that he is an upgrade on the right side compared to what incumbent Dan Moore Jr. offers on the left. Moore has stated several times that he is less comfortable on the right. It wasn’t until Week 9 that Jones took over as the full-time starter on the right side last season.
The Steelers have always brought their rookies along thoughtfully, so there is at least a chance that the team opens the season with the same configuration that it ended the 2023 season with. But Fautanu enters the NFL with much more starting college experience than Jones had. It would not be surprising for the Steelers to break precedence with how they approach rookies and start the season with Jones at left tackle and Fautanu at right tackle.
