The Pittsburgh Steelers are playing OT Troy Fautanu’s style of football—and also just playing him in general. They gave the rookie first-round pick a healthy dose of first-team snaps during Tuesday’s practice for the first time.
That potentially sets him up on a clear path to start the season opener, which is no great upset. Fautanu has steadily improved throughout camp, according to Alex Kozora’s reports, and, well, rookies just don’t sit long anymore.
What I found interesting, though, was Fautanu’s comments about the Steelers’ offense versus what he ran at Washington. It sounds like he has a clear preference for what he expects to see under Arthur Smith, and I’m not complaining.
“The offense that I’m running now with the Steelers is way different than what we did in Washington”, Fautanu said on Tuesday, via the team’s website. “We had four NFL receivers and an NFL quarterback. All we did was pass the ball, so transitioning now into the NFL with Coach Arthur, I know he’s a really big smashmouth football [guy].
“I love it. That’s what I love about football is being able to really get off the ball and impose your will on another man. You don’t get to do that anywhere else. I would just say that, just the run-blocking part, the technique, especially with doing a lot of outside-zone, wide-zone stuff. Just making sure that I’ve got my angle and just run on that angle. I wouldn’t say we did a lot of that in college just because we just weren’t on the same pages with the backs and the o-line. It’s a whole team thing”.
The 20th-overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, Troy Fautanu logged over 2,000 snaps for the Washington Huskies. They did heavily favor throwing the ball because, as Fautanu mentioned, they had NFL passing talent.
That includes QB Michael Penix Jr., drafted in the first round, and WRs Rome Odunze, Ja’Lynn Polk, and Jalen McMillan. Odunze went in the first round, in the top 10, while the others landed in the third round. Troy Fautanu and their other tackle, Roger Rosengarten, both landed in the AFC North. The Ravens selected the latter in the second round, and he appears likely to start.
Under Arthur Smith, the Pittsburgh Steelers will be running the ball quite a bit. They have stocked up on tight ends and offensive linemen, drafting three of the latter in the first four rounds this year. At least Fautanu and Zach Frazier will start soon, and who knows about Mason McCormick.
So Fautanu spent most of his college career leaning heavily on pass protection but expects to do a lot more run-blocking in the NFL. A sound technician, he shouldn’t have a problem with the change in emphasis, as long as he plays with power. Some questioned his size coming out if he were to stay at tackle, but he has looked the part. The ultimate test won’t come until we start playing games, though, and we see if he can be a road grader.
