Fresh off his first Pro Bowl, Isaac Seumalo hopes he’ll join Steelers teammate Zach Frazier in the near future. Selected as an alternate this season, Seumalo spoke about his rookie teammate at the Pro Bowl. After spending a year playing alongside him, suffice it to say the veteran was impressed.
“Zach balled out”, Seumalo said of Frazier, via Teresa Varley writing for the Steelers’ website. “I am sure he has a lot of Pro Bowl trips in his career. He played really well”.
A second-round pick out of West Virginia, Frazier quickly ascended to the Steelers’ starting lineup. He missed two games due to injury but was otherwise a workhorse at center. In all, he played just a bit under 1,000 snaps as it is after a lengthy college starting career.
Seumalo is aware that the Steelers have a distinguished history at the center position. They have two in the Hall of Fame already in Mike Webster and Dermontti Dawson, with Maurkice Pouncey potentially following them. Zach Frazier is the biggest swing the team has taken at center since Pouncey retired.
In fact, the Steelers set off to find their next great center last offseason. Frazier is the solution they came upon, taking him in the second round. So far, that looks to be a shrewd investment, even if he didn’t make the Pro Bowl as a rookie like Pouncey did.
In 11 seasons, Pouncey went to the Pro Bowl nine times, missing nearly two full seasons due to injury. From that perspective, Zach Frazier is already lagging behind. But the Steelers believe in him. Even if he isn’t as flashy athletically, he has the makings of a great center such as Pouncey.
It wasn’t so long ago that the Steelers sent three offensive linemen to the Pro Bowl. In 2017, Pouncey, RG David DeCastro, and LT Alejandro Villanueva all represented the Black and Gold. DeCastro, a 2012 first-round pick, is the last Steelers draft pick to make the Pro Bowl along the line. Can Zach Frazier be the one to break that streak?
The team has also invested in two first-round tackles, Broderick Jones in 2023 and Troy Fautanu in 2024. Fautanu only played in one game before suffering a season-ending injury. While Jones showed promise as a rookie, he did not take a step forward this season. An argument could be made that Frazier was actually the Steelers’ best lineman.
In addition to Frazier and the young tackles, the Steelers also have Mason McCormick, yet another rookie. He and Frazier spent a lot of time starting together this season. This young group could make up the core of the offensive line for years to come. And Frazier could be the anchor of it.
