Player: C Zach Frazier
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: Like his fellow rookie Troy Fautanu, second-round pick Zach Frazier is growing more and more comfortable. As Alex Kozora recently noted, he just had his best practice so far, and appears on track to start. He still has to unseat Nate Herbig, though, which is a bigger ask for the coaches than for the fans.
The Pittsburgh Steelers knew what they were doing when they doubled down on the offensive line in the draft. With their first-round pick, they took T Troy Fautanu, undoubtedly hoping C Zach Frazier would still be there in the second round.
Fortunately for them, he was, and they pounced on him. Now they are just waiting for him to “prove” himself before anointing him a starter. But considering the Steelers started Kendrick Green as a rookie, I think Frazier will be out there.
After all, how much better can Nate Herbig big as a center than J.C. Hassenauer was? And Frazier is certainly considerably better at center than Green. At least he is the right size for the position and has the demeanor.
Zach Frazier has unleashed that attitude more frequently recently in practice, undoubtedly a consequence of his growing more and more comfortable. Well into padded practices, he looks like he is in his element, just playing football.
One hopes that the coaching staff finds an opportunity to play both Frazier and Troy Fautanu with the first-team offense tonight. For as much progress as Frazier has made, Herbig has remained firmly entrenched ahead of him.
That shouldn’t be too big of a concern, though, at least from my perspective. This is a situation where the job is Frazier’s to win, rather than Herbig’s to lose. All the Steelers are waiting for is that moment where they know they can trust Frazier to do the job. Once they reach that point, he will be the starter.
And I think that point is coming up just around the corner.
As the season progresses, Steelers players’ stocks rise and fall. The nature of the evaluation differs with the time of year, with in-season considerations being more often short-term. Considerations in the offseason often have broader implications, particularly when players lose their jobs, or the team signs someone. This time of year is full of transactions, whether minor or major.
A bad game, a new contract, an injury, a promotion—any number of things affect a player’s value. Think of it as a stock on the market, based on speculation. You’ll feel better about a player after a good game, or worse after a bad one. Some stock updates are minor, while others are likely to be quite drastic, so bear in mind the degree. I’ll do my best to explain the nature of that in the reasoning section of each column.
