In one of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ freak injuries of the season, first-round OT Troy Fautanu was lost for the year not during a game but a practice, dislocating his kneecap and landing on injured reserve days after making his first career NFL start. Speaking to reporters Monday before the team heads home for the offseason, Fautanu explained how it happened.
As shared by the PPG’s Brian Batko, Fautanu hurt his knee trying to anchor into the ground in pass protection. Immediately, he knew he was hurt with an MRI confirming the team’s worst fears that led Fautanu to tears.
While that tweet doesn’t offer full detail, it sounds like Fautanu was trying to put his foot in the ground but awkwardly stepped and landed wrong. Perhaps, and this is my own speculation, he was using a “hop step” to defend a power rush taught by o-line coach Pat Meyer (and many others, to be fair) that has the lineman give ground to gain stability.
No matter how it happened, Fautanu immediately landed on injured reserve and didn’t make it back the rest of the year. The team wasn’t even able to open his practice window to get him reps over the final two weeks like they did with fellow rookies WR Roman Wilson and DL Logan Lee.
Fautanu’s rookie year was defined by injuries. He sprained his MCL in his first preseason game, missing the rest of the summer. Healthy for the start of the regular season, he was a backup in Week 1 before making his debut Week 2. Earning the start, Fautanu played 55 snaps against the Denver Broncos. More than the team planned from a rookie in high elevation, but OT Broderick Jones’ repeated penalties caused him to be benched mid-drive.
All Fautanu can do is look toward a healthier 2025. Per reporter Mark Kaboly, Fautanu expects to be cleared for the spring.
That will let him hit the ground running for next season. Pittsburgh was as high on Fautanu as any rookie in recent memory, eager to get him into the starting lineup from nearly the first day. His knee injuries unfortunately became a recurring barrier. Assuming his health hasn’t caused the Steelers to sour, he figures to be a favorite to start in 2025, especially now that Dan Moore Jr. is a pending free agent.
He can look to David DeCastro as a model of success. Like Fautanu, DeCastro was a first-round pick who dislocated his kneecap as a rookie, though he made it back late in the year. While it was a speed bump, DeCastro started 15 games as a sophomore and went on to be one of the best guards of his era.
