INDIANAPOLIS — Rookie offensive lineman Mason McCormick is expected to make his first career start for the Pittsburgh Steelers against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, Steelers Now has confirmed. The news was first reported by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
McCormick is expected to start in place of injured guard Isaac Seumalo, who will miss his fourth game with a preseason pectoral injury. Second-year guard Spencer Anderson started the first three games that Seumalo missed, but last week against the Los Angeles Chargers, McCormick got his first NFL playing time.
The fourth-round rookie out of South Dakota State rotated in for 25 snaps of offense, playing 12 in place of Anderson at left guard and also working as the team’s sixth offensive lineman. This week, it’ll be McCormick getting the start.
“I’m super excited,” he said on Friday. “Any opportunity you get to play this game, it’s a fun one. I look forward to the challenge and whatever happens, happens.”
Head coach Mike Tomlin said on Tuesday that the Steelers may continue some type of rotation.
“We’ll continue to do some of the things that we did at left guard last week in terms of Spencer and Mason both getting work and watching those guys throughout the week to kind of decide how we divvy up the labor based on that performance,” he said.
With Dylan Cook and Troy Fautanu both on the injured reserve list, Anderson is also the team’s top backup at the tackle position
The Steelers have already had two rookies start game this season: Fautanu at right tackle and Zach Frazier at center. Undrafted rookie Beanie Bishop has not started a game, but is the team’s top Nickel cornerback.