Steelers Rookie Troy Fautanu Makes First Career Start vs. Broncos
DENVER — Pittsburgh Steelers first-round pick Troy Fautanu made his first career start at right tackle on Sunday against the Denver Broncos. He replaces 2023 first-round pick Broderick Jones, who’s been dealing with a nagging right elbow injury. Jones is expected to receive snaps in Sunday’s game, however, according to the CBS broadcast.
Fautanu worked with the first-team this week during practice. Head coach Mike Tomlin laid out on Tuesday that Fautanu starting could be in the plans, and that indeed is the case.
“We have a commitment to continuing it because we liked what we saw from him during team development,” Tomlin said on Tuesday. “He’s deserving of that. His talents are deserving of that, and so, we’ll balance that the best we can.”
#Steelers first-team offensive line in warmups includes rookie Troy Fautanu at right tackle. Dan Moore at left tackle. pic.twitter.com/sa4sPx83E1
— Alan Saunders (@ASaunders_PGH) September 15, 2024
Jones has struggled since suffering a right elbow injury early in training camp. He had an especially poor first two preseason games, though he played somewhat better against the Detroit Lions and in the opener in Atlanta.
Some time down could let Jones fully heal, and perhaps let him shed the bulky brace that he’s been wearing for the last five weeks. He could also start to work in earnest on the left side of the line, something that was expected to happen during training camp, but was shelved when Fautanu was injured.
The Steelers see Jones as their long-term answer at left tackle, and with Moore’s contract set to expire at the end of the 2024 season, this is almost assuredly his last run with the team. But the Steelers are in win-now mode, and won’t prioritize future development over giving themselves the best chance beat the Broncos this Sunday.
Fautanu played in 40 games and made 28 starts with Washington over five collegiate seasons. Left tackle Dan Moore Jr. believes he’ll be up to the challenge in his first career start.
“Troy’s been ready since he walked in the door,” Moore said on Friday. “He’s so intuitive. He’s smart. He gets it. He wants to work. He wants to be out there. I don’t think the moment will be too big for him. Like anything, we’ll just have to calm his nerves and just keep collected and keep him neutral. …
“We were really impressed with Troy. His development from OTAs to camp, it’s just miraculous. Each day, he just continues to get better. In the little bit of time he played in the preseason, he played really well. I think he impressed the coaches and the offensive linemen, honestly. We have all kinds of respect for him.”
Alan Saunders contributed reporting from Denver.
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