Less than two weeks ago, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac sounded confident that rookie OT Troy Fautanu would start the regular season opener against the Atlanta Falcons, even knowing his summer was cut short by an MCL sprain. Today, Dulac isn’t so sure.
Appearing on 102.5 DVE as part of the Steelers Audio Network, Dulac said Fautanu’s status is unclear for Week 1.
“I think the injury might have slowed that decision a little bit to Bob [Labriola’s] point because he’s not going to get any additional practice time,” Dulac said. “But we will find out what happens after Labor Day when they start preparing for the Atlanta Falcons. I think maybe the injury has slowed the process. I’m not gonna sit here and say he is or isn’t going to be the starting tackle in Atlanta.”
Shortly after Troy Fautanu was injured in his NFL debut against the Houston Texans, Dulac wrote that the Steelers remained confident in him and were ready to put him into the lineup once healthy.
“After three weeks of training camp and just one preseason game, they are ready to hand the starting right tackle job over to their No. 1 draft choice,” Dulac wrote in an Aug. 12 column.
His article went on to note that Broderick Jones and Dan Moore Jr. would be battling it out for the left tackle spot, though Jones’ draft pedigree and upside gave him a clear edge in the fight. Now, it seems possible Jones and Moore are the Steelers’ starting tackles against the Falcons. Labriola, offering his opinion, believed Troy Fautanu would not start the opener after missing so much time.
That always felt like a reasonable possibility, even knowing Dulac’s reporting. While the team was thrilled to have Fautanu fall to them at No. 20, and he impressed during training camp, missing nearly the entire preseason cost him crucial development time. Fautanu struggled in the snaps he received, allowing a sack and a pressure against the Texans in the opener before departing at halftime.
But even if Fautanu is the backup to begin the year, he’ll soon work his way into the lineup.
“It won’t be a very long time after that that he will be that guy,” Dulac said.
Pittsburgh is already slated to start one rookie on the offensive line in second-round pick Zach Frazier, assuming the job after Nate Herbig’s season-ending rotator cuff injury. Frazier has had an impressive summer and has been available for every practice and every game, earning praise from teammates and coaches. Time will tell if Troy Fautanu joins him against the Falcons. If so, it’ll be the first time since 2021 that Pittsburgh started a pair of rookies up front when they started LT Dan Moore Jr. and C Kendrick Green to begin the season.
