Player: OT Troy Fautanu
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: The Steelers saw little of Troy Fautanu as a rookie, but not because of playing time opportunities. They wanted him to have all the opportunities in the world, but he simply got injured. Since the season ended, we have only heard positive reports about his recovery and progress toward Year 2.
The Steelers are counting on Troy Fautanu to be a home run first-round pick, or at least a really solid double. Perhaps he doesn’t need to be a perennial All-Pro, but they need him to be perennially reliable. Last season, he failed to provide that due to injury, but there is optimism for his second season.
Drafted 20th overall, Fautanu marked the second offensive tackle the Steelers selected in the first round in as many years. Because of their 2023 selection, he moved from left tackle to right, where he spent the offseason adapting.
But during his first preseason game, Fautanu went down with a knee injury, missing the rest of the offseason. The Steelers’ first-round pick slowly worked his way back and started in Week 2—over Broderick Jones. By then, it seemed the plan was clear: the job was his. Only his body had other ideas.
During the following week of practice, Fautanu suffered another injury, dislocating his kneecap. While there was some initial optimism that he could potentially return if the Steelers made the postseason, he never made it back. Instead, he spent the rest of his rookie year watching and learning.
While he didn’t return to practice, there seemed to be consistently positive reports about Troy Fautanu. Including from himself, after the Steelers’ season ended, confident he would return to start the offseason program. The most effusive reports tend to come from the beat writers, presumably reflecting the Steelers’ optimism.
Of course, they can’t really afford otherwise. The Steelers need Troy Fautanu to work out. He is one of the bedrocks of their rebuilt offensive line, upon which so much depends. Especially without a franchise quarterback, they need their trenches secured. They believe Fautanu will help them do that—as long as he can get on the field.
With the new league year underway and the Steelers turning their roster over, it’s once again time to “take stock”. It took a while, but we finally saw some of that change the team talked about after the season ended. Certainly, the move to trade for WR DK Metcalf qualifies as a change, not to mention the accompanying contract.
There is still a long way to go before we know what this Steelers team is going to look like. Once the dust settles on free agency, we turn our attention to the draft, and so on. What other moves might the team make, perhaps unexpected acquisitions or departures? If they traded for one player, they could certainly trade for another, or trade one away. This is a Steelers team starving for postseason success, but how desperate are they for a playoff win in 2025?
