As the Pittsburgh Steelers’ first-round pick this year, there are big expectations for Troy Fautanu. The rookie should end up playing right tackle this year, and during training camp, he was beginning to push for the starting job. However, a knee injury has put him on the shelf for the next two weeks, according to reports. However, Tomlin seemed encouraged by what he did see out of Fautanu prior to the injury.
In a video from the team’s website, Tomlin spoke to the media after practice Sunday and was asked how he felt about what Fautanu has done so far.
“He was doing really well,” Tomlin said. “Obviously, we wanted to get him a lot of work because that’s just where he is in development, but I like the general trajectory of it.”
Fautanu did have an ugly rep in pass protection against Danielle Hunter in the Steelers’ preseason opener against the Houston Texans. But Hunter is an elite pass-rusher, so it makes sense that Fautanu would have a tough time in that matchup. He did flash at times in the run game though, showing the nasty edge that the Steelers are looking for out of their offensive linemen.
It would be nice to get to see more of Fautanu in the rest of the preseason, but he’s clearly impressed the coaching staff so far. However, this injury likely means he won’t start to begin the season, unless there are further injuries to the offensive line or other players struggle. It’s an unfortunate development, but thankfully not one that should hamper Fautanu too much.
Last year, the Steelers took a patient approach to inserting Broderick Jones into the starting lineup, and it seems Fautanu may follow a similar path. Tomlin being impressed by the work Fautanu has done so far is a good sign that he shouldn’t have to wait too long to get on the field.
At least Fautanu got to appear in one preseason game. While it wasn’t a huge sample size, he did get a feel for how one of the NFL’s best pass rushers would try to attack him. Hopefully he can review the film from that game and work on the mental aspect of the game while his body isn’t healthy. Overall, Fautanu is still in a good place on the team, even if he’s going to lose some valuable reps.
