Over the past few seasons, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been trying to rebuild their offensive line. During the last great stretch of Ben Roethlisberger’s career, the Steelers protected him with a star-studded group. Trying to find suitable replacements for them has been difficult. Selected in the fourth round of the 2021 draft, Dan Moore Jr. helped start that movement. He had a shaky start with the Steelers, and things weren’t always pretty, but Moore feels like he was a solid player during his last season in Pittsburgh.
“I’m always looking to get better, regardless of what the numbers say,” Moore said Tuesday during a press conference via the Tennessee Titans’ YouTube channel. “I thought I played well last season. The Titans thought I played well last season.
“That’s what I’m focused on, getting better. [Offensive line coach Bill Callahan] is coaching me up on things that I need to work on, things that I can tweak in my game. That’s all I’m looking forward to is the future.”
This offseason, Moore signed a massive deal with the Titans to be their starting left tackle. That was a role he held in Pittsburgh from basically the beginning of his time there. During his four years with the Steelers, Moore started 66 games, only missing two games.
To start his NFL career, Moore had plenty of issues. However, over the years, he developed into a decent player, although his numbers last year might not indicate that. In 2024, according to Pro Football Focus, Moore allowed 12 sacks, 41 pressures, and committed five penalties. He graded out as PFF’s 46th-best offensive tackle, which doesn’t match the big price tag the Titans put on him.
“Numbers games says I gave up however many sacks. But you look at technique, you look at the film, I’m in front of defenders,” Moore said. “That’s what I’m focused on doing.”
Moore might be correct that those numbers don’t tell the whole story of his 2024 season. During the first half of the season, he looked like a solid player. While the Steelers’ offensive line was going through a lot of change and weathering injuries, Moore was a consistent presence, looking like a trustworthy veteran.
However, during the second half of the year, Moore’s play dropped off. Part of that might be because he was blocking for Russell Wilson. In his career, Wilson has been one of the best quarterbacks in the league, but taking sacks has always been a huge issue for him. Now, with much of his athleticism sapped by Father Time, that’s an even bigger problem, one that reared its ugly head several times for the Steelers.
Some of those sacks were Moore’s fault. He wasn’t a perfect player. However, he did take a step forward, and his leadership seemed invaluable. In back-to-back years, the Steelers spent their first-round pick on an offensive tackle. Despite that, Moore never complained. Instead, he mentored Broderick Jones and Troy Fautanu, even though they could’ve replaced him. Pittsburgh might miss that this year.
