Steelers Land Nasty Offensive Tackle in New Mock Draft

The Pittsburgh Steelers are coming out of the Senior Bowl looking more likely than ever to land an offensive tackle or center in the first round. But who could that be? One of the best players in the entire class at tackle is Oregon State’s Taliese Fuaga, and Pro Football Network has him coming to Pittsburgh in a new mock draft.

It’s not the first time that guy will be mocked by the Steelers, and for good reason. Fuaga is the type of player that the team looks for in their prospects. And at 20th overall, there is not much of a better scenario than Fuaga ending up falling right into the Steelers’ laps and fortifying the offensive line.

While Tyler Guyton may have put together the week that will help him rise the most at the Senior Bowl, no one was more consistent or aggressive than Fuaga. It’s no surprise the potential third offensive tackle in the class would be a steady force, but even against top competition like Laiatu Latu, Fuaga held his own. He mixed up his pass sets, showed off his sweet feet, and has some serious grip strength to work with when he gets them inside.

Sometimes, he oversets, but he has the athleticism and aggressiveness to recover. Given his ability to move bodies in the run game, I understand some of the guard talk, but his length is not so much of a negative to move him off tackle. Good player who is rightfully getting a lot of hype right now.

Now, the more significant question is if he will fall there. Joe Alt, Olu Fashanu, Amarius Mims, JC Latham, and Guyton are huddled around the class’s same area as Fuaga. It’s far from a slam dunk if he makes it, but with six legitimate options sitting there, it’s hard not to see the Steelers have a chance to land an excellent tackle. Fuaga might be the type of player that could look to draft with best player available value.