Steelers OT Troy Fautanu Stuck Waiting for Chance after Ill-Timed Injury

PITTSBURGH — Rookie tackle Troy Fautanu dressed for his first game with the Pittsburgh Steelers in Sunday’s 18-10 win over the Atlanta Falcons.

Dressing turned out to be the most strenuous thing he was asked to do. Fautanu was one of three of the 49 active Steelers players that did not see the field, along with backup quarterbacks Kyle Allen and Russell Wilson.

In many ways, it wasn’t surprising. Fautanu has been recovering from a left MCL sprain that he suffered in the preseason opener against the Houston Texans. He got on the practice field for the first time last week. 

He was a limited participant in Wednesday’s practice, the only one last week in pads, and then was a full go for two unpadded practice sessions on Thursday and Friday. It didn’t exactly look like he was 100% out there.

The limited workload meant that it was unlikely that Fautanu was going to play against the Falcons unless absolutely necessary. He would have come into the game as the backup if either Dan Moore Jr. or Broderick Jones suffered an in-game injury.

In reality, this week of practice will be his first real chance to make an impact after the injury. He said he feels close to 100% — though he’s still wearing a sleeve on his left leg — and ready for his chance.

“I think ramping up last week really let me hit the ground running for this week,” Fautanu said.

The only problem now is that chances will be few and far between. The Steelers may or may not practice in pads this week on Wednesday. Offensive linemen aren’t going to be able to show much without pads.

Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Troy Fautanu in a preseason game against the Houston Texans on Aug. 10, 2024. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now

Fautanu said the coaches have told him it’s going to be more about what happens in games. Reading between the lines, it seems that like last year with Jones, one of the starters is goin to have to do something to lose their job in addition to Fautanu winning it.

There’s an added layer of complexity this year. Fautanu has been working almost exclusively at right tackle and says he’s more comfortable there than on the left side.

“Right and left both come with their unique challenges,” he said. “I actually like right tackle better than left. It’s weird. I am right-hand dominant.”

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If he wins a job, it would mostly likely come on the right side, that would likely flip Broderick Jones over to the left side.

But Jones hasn’t practiced at left tackle very much since the start of the preseason and has been limited by an elbow injury on his right arm, where he’s still wearing a bulky brace. A move to the left side would put his wonky arm on the inside, and on the quarterbacks’ blind side, which could be a bad combination.

The Steelers could wait until Jones heals to make such a move, or wait until Fautanu forces their hand by looking so good in practice they feel like they can’t hold him back, or, he might just have to wait.

That’s been a frustrating process, but Fautanu is just trying his hardest to make sure he’s ready for his shot when it comes.

“When I do get a chance, I have to make sure I make the most of it,” he said.