Steelers Rookie Troy Fautanu Suffers Knee Injury in NFL Debut

PITTSBURGH –  Pittsburgh Steelers rookie offensive tackle Troy Fautanu suffered a knee injury in Friday night’s loss to the Houston Texans. Fautanu was seen wearing a brace on his left knee after the game. It’s unclear at what point the injury occurred.

Mike Tomlin confirmed Fautanu’s knee injury to reporters after the game, but provided no further details. Tomlin said he would provide an update on Sunday when the Steelers return to Saint Vincent College to wrap up training camp.

Fautanu struggled in his NFL debut, allowing two sacks. On one rep, Danielle Hunter gave Fautanu a welcome to the NFL moment.

#Steelers OT Troy Fautanu suffered a knee injury during tonight’s game and is being evaluated.

— Alan Saunders (@ASaunders_PGH) August 10, 2024

The Steelers drafted Troy Fautanu out of the University of Washington with the 20th overall pick in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.

In Troy Fautanu’s final season at Washington, he played in and started all 15 games of their season at left tackle. Fautanu played a career-high 993 offensive snaps and allowed two sacks and three quarterback hurries. His play earned him First-Team All-Big 12 honors for the second consecutive season.

Additionally, Fautanu won the Morris Trophy for being the Pac-12’s top offensive lineman.

Fautanu has split first-team split reps with Dan Moore Jr. during training camp. He’s a player that the Steelers have high hopes for, so hopefully his knee injury is nothing serious. Missing extended time would also hinder the trajectory of his rookie season.

Fautanu said he has a simple approach to earning a starting spot on the offensive line.

“Honestly, just treating every day like it’s a game day,” he said. “Treating every rep the same way, too. Just making sure that I approach every day in a way to get better. And just focusing on that, and whatever happens after that I’ll let the coaches deal with that.”

Alan Saunders contributed reporting from Pittsburgh.