Halfway through the first quarter in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Chargers, Mason McCormick made his regular-season debut on offense. It wasn’t at his natural position at guard, but rather as a tackle-eligible tight end, serving as a sixth offensive lineman. By the end of the second quarter, McCormick rotated in for Spencer Anderson and they switched off with each other at left guard the rest of the game.
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin provided some clarity on that rotation during his Tuesday press conference ahead of Week 4. Many wondered if that was an in-game reaction to potentially poor play by Anderson, or if it was part of the plan.
“It was done all last week in preparation,” Tomlin said via the Steelers’ YouTube channel.
So it was indeed part of the plan. More than likely, they planned the tackle-eligible package for Broderick Jones, but Troy Fautanu’s injury forced Jones back to right tackle. This gave McCormick an opportunity to play in that tackle-eligible role and perhaps opened the door for a rotational role at guard for him as well.
Tomlin spoke a little about McCormick and what he thought of his debut.
“He’s a talented young guy. He’s done a nice job in team development,” Tomlin said. “He’s had a lot of success in college. No stage is too big for him. He’s not a blinker. He runs to the action. I like the finish mentality in his play. I think it’s contagious. I think all of our guys, young guys, have that finish trait. I think that’s why we were so excited about that collective. Talking about he and Troy and Zach Frazier, they got that finishing trait. That’s able to form the makeup of the personality of a collective as they grow older together.”
I posted a film room breakdown of Mason McCormick’s debut this morning that shows the finish mentality that Tomlin described. He plays to, or even through, the whistle and fits the description of a bully along the offensive line. Below is one clip from the film room of McCormick finishing a play.
With Isaac Seumalo getting closer to a return, it is unclear what McCormick’s role will be for the rest of the season. Anderson told the media that he was asked to start preparing at right tackle to be a swing depth player at multiple positions. That would likely leave McCormick as the top backup at guard. It is entirely possible the Steelers continue using him in that tackle-eligible role in the meantime to keep him involved and accelerate his development.
