The offensive line had a lot to sort through this offseason with three new faces in the mix via the 2024 NFL Draft. Injuries complicated matters, including one to Isaac Seumalo late in the process last Wednesday.
During Mike Tomlin’s Tuesday press conference ahead of the Week 1 game against the Atlanta Falcons, he confirmed that Spencer Anderson will start Week 1 in place of Seumalo.
Tomlin was asked if Anderson is the next man up at left guard.
“Yes, he is,” Tomlin said in a video of the press conference posted on the team YouTube page.
It was either going to be Anderson or rookie fourth-round pick Mason McCormick, but it appears the more veteran of the two will get the first shot at filling in for Seumalo.
Anderson may have more NFL experience being with the team for a full season, but he has far left meaningful experience at guard than McCormick overall. Anderson was primarily a tackle for the Steelers in Year 1 and played that position in college at Maryland. He played 862 total guard snaps in college, but the vast majority of those were on the right side.
McCormick, on the other hand, played 3,397 college snaps at guard and the vast majority were on the left side.
All that aside, it will be Anderson suiting up for the Steelers in Week 1 with the starting unit. Presumably, that would make McCormick the top depth option at all three interior spots if something happens to Anderson, Zach Frazier, or James Daniels during the Falcons game.
This is not a big surprise, as Spencer Anderson was often the first one off the bench to replace Seumalo in the preseason games and throughout training camp when he had veteran days off.
Seumalo is by far the oldest starter on the offensive line, so replacing him with a second-year player who is 24 years old and was a seventh-round pick is at least some cause for concern. Other than Daniels, who is 26, the entire starting offensive line will be 25 or younger, including Frazier, the rookie center.
