Who will the Steelers start: Broderick Jones or Troy Fautanu?
The Steelers have less than a week to prepare for the regular-season opener, and they have up to three offensive line slots undecided for that particular game. Hanging over the conversation, as it often does, is the matter of injuries, to Troy Fautanu and Isaac Seumalo.
Seumalo will likely miss at least the first two or three games of the season after suffering a pectoral strain. The Steelers have to decide who will fill in during that time, reportedly between Spencer Anderson and Mason McCormick. The tackle situation is in a shambles, though, with Dan Moore Jr., Broderick Jones, and Fautanu in an unorganized ménage.
While the Steelers couldn’t do anything about Seumalo’s sudden injury, one can question their plan at the tackle positions. If the Steelers hoped for Broderick Jones to move to left tackle, they had a funny way of showing it. He hardly played left tackle at all—but then Troy Fautanu’s injury fouled up their plans, anyway.
The Steelers hope for Fautanu to practice today, but is one week of practice even enough to start a rookie who missed a big chunk of training camp? And is a week of Jones practicing at left tackle enough to start him there?
Ultimately, it seems either Broderick Jones or Troy Fautanu will start, and not both. Fautanu would have to prove he is healthy and ready, and Jones would have to look fully comfortable playing left. Dan Moore Jr. has done a commendable job this offseason, and there is no immediate need to usher him out.
Of course, there is an off chance we’ll see Jones and Fautanu starting, but I think it’s the least likely of the most plausible outcomes. It’s hard to imagine Moore won’t be starting, but across from whom—Jones or Fautanu?
I’m not sure the Steelers will even know until the end of the week, unless they know and are not saying. And if they do know, it’s because they know they’re not comfortable starting Fautanu with so little practice.
The Steelers’ 2024 season is approaching, following another disappointing year that culminated in a first-round playoff loss. The only change-up in the annual formula lately is whether they exit early or miss the playoffs altogether. They have had a long offseason since the Buffalo Bills stamped them out of their misery back in January.
The biggest question hanging over the team is the quarterback question. Does Russell Wilson make them a Super Bowl-caliber team, or are they wasting a year? How will the team continue to address the depth chart?
The regular season is here, following weeks of camp and preseason games. The Steelers made numerous moves through signings and trade—and release. More than usual, they seemed comfortable creating holes, confident they can fill them. Some they managed to fill, others not so much. Now that we have so many pieces of the puzzle, however, we merely have a new set of questions to ask.
