Five games. Five new O-line combinations. That’s the story of the 2024 Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line, ravaged by injuries through just a quarter of the season. First round rookie OT Troy Fautanu? Done for the regular season. OG James Daniels? Out for the year. C Nate Herbig? His year’s been busted since August. There is good news in LG Isaac Seumalo returning from a pec injury, though it creates even more shuffling across the board. During his weekly Mike Tomlin Show, Tomlin outlined what to expect Sunday night in Dallas.
“Thankfully, we got Isaac back this week, and so it’s good to have him back in the lineup,” Tomlin told host Bob Pompeani of the Steelers’ offensive line. “With [James Daniels] going down, it’s just gonna be another opportunity for Mason McCormick to show what he’s capable of. We’ll slide him over to the right.”
McCormick moving from left to right guard isn’t a surprise, an expected and reported move throughout the week. Nor is it a shock the Steelers are shifting a lineman from his natural and college spot. McCormick played roughly 99 percent of his extensive time at South Dakota State as a left guard and had practiced there with Pittsburgh throughout the entire summer and the first month of the regular season.
But the team soured on Spencer Anderson as the starter, rotating him with McCormick in Week 3 and starting McCormick in Week 4. A switch to the right side won’t change their plans. McCormick’s bigger frame and better run-blocking ability, though his pad level must improve, make him the more attractive option.
That leaves Anderson in a swing role and “big” personnel packages.
“Spencer’s been playing guard and tackle since Troy’s injury, and so we want to stay in that mindset with him,” Tomlin said. “He’ll play some guard, some tackle, some tackle-reporting as eligible in short yardage-like circumstances as a tight end. His versatility has been a real asset to us, and so we’ll stay in that mindset. We’ll slide Mason over the right guard and start him.”
Tomlin didn’t technically confirm McCormick would be the every down right guard, but his framing certainly indicated as much. Anderson made the team as a 2023 rookie due to his versatility, playing all five spots in training camp and everything except left tackle in the preseason. Pittsburgh had him focus on guard in his second trip to Latrobe, but the injuries that have thinned out the o-line have pushed Anderson into that multiple hat-wearing role. It still seems probable that if LT Dan Moore Jr. went down, RT Broderick Jones would flip to the left side, with Anderson stepping in at right tackle.
The Steelers were questioned for making three offensive line additions during the draft instead of addressing other areas like slot corner or defensive line earlier. But their commitment is paying off, and they’re weathering the storm better than most and stronger than they would have in previous years.
Pittsburgh’s added two veterans since being bit by the injury bug. There’s OT Calvin Anderson and OG/C Max Scharping. Ideally, those guys won’t have to see the field, and the Steelers still have enough options to avoid that. Anderson could be the first man off the bench to play guard or right tackle, Ryan McCollum the next man up at center, and the aforementioned deck chair shuffling if something happened to Moore.
Hopefully, the Steelers’ bad luck of walking-under-ladders proportions has ended, but with 13 more games to play, it’s difficult to believe the team is done dealing with offensive line injuries.
