Pittsburgh Steelers guards Isaac Seumalo and James Daniels were ranked in the top 20 by Pro Football Focus. They’re considered among the elite when it comes to guard duos.
The Dallas Cowboys’ Zach Martin and Tyler Smith, the Kansas City Chiefs’ Joe Thuney and Trey Smith, and the Cleveland Browns’ Joel Bitonio and Wyatt Teller also received top guard duo rankings.
Seumalo was ranked 14th, while Daniels came in at No. 2o. The Browns have the best guard duo in the league with Bitonio at No. 8 and Teller at No. 9. Former Steeler and current Los Angeles Rams guard Kevin Dotson was ranked 12th.
Seumalo had a 71.9 PFF overall grade in 2023, the 14th best among guards, and a season without allowing a single sack. He also allowed just 26 pressures in 2023, translating into a 4.8% pressure rate allowed.
Thomas Valentine of PFF noted that Seumalo spent much of his NFL career banged up, playing more than 1,000 snaps in a full season only three times in eight years, with two of those seasons coming in 2022 and 2023.
In regards to Daniels, Valentine said he’s one of the most underrated guards throughout his six NFL seasons and might be considered underrated again. The former Bear earned the lowest grade of his career in 2023 but has allowed only one sack in two years with the Steelers.Daniels recorded the 20th-lowest pressure rate allowed among all guards in the NFL and let up 24 pressures in 2023.
Despite being remarkably consistent, Daniels confirmed to Steelers Now that he has been informed by the team that there won’t be talks regarding an extension this offseason.
“I was told nothing’s going to happen, so I don’t have to worry about that,” Daniels said on Wednesday.
Daniels is entering the final year of a three-year, $26.5 million contract that he signed with the team in 2022. He has started 32 of a possible 34 regular season games since joining the team, missing two contests last season.