Steelers Rookie Could Shock Everyone And Challenge His Classmate For A Starting Role

The Pittsburgh Steelers had a clear focus during the 2024 NFL Draft, to upgrade the offensive line. General Manager Omar Khan and Assistant General Manager Andy Weidl did this with three out of the organization's seven selections. They selected Troy Fautanu in the first round, Zach Frazier in the second round, and Mason McCormick in the fourth. Both Fautanu and Frazier are expected to be able to start right away, while McCormick will likely need to sit behind both James Daniels and Isaac Seumalo during his rookie year.

McCormick was one of the best guards in the nation, but he didn't get much attention due to him playing at a smaller school in South Dakota State. He had opportunities to move up in the college football world and accept NIL money at bigger schools, but he was too loyal to do so. Had he transferred to a higher-level program, he likely would have been selected much higher in the draft. He only ever played left guard during his last three seasons in college, but he was listed as the Jackrabbits' backup center, which he shared during an interview with the Steelers after a rookie minicamp practice on Friday.

"I was the backup center at SDSU, if anything happened to our center, I would have moved over." McCormick was then asked about playing center for Pittsburgh. "I'm ready to do whatever it takes to get on the field, either guard spot, center, I just want to help this organization in whatever ways that I can."

McCormick is extremely selfless and loyal, which he displayed by staying in one spot throughout his college career, despite having many opportunities to go elsewhere. When he says he'll do anything to help the organization, he means it. Pittsburgh drafted Frazier with the 51st overall pick, and he is expected to start at center for Pittsburgh immediately. If Frazier struggles at all to begin his career, Pittsburgh knows they have an option to fall back on in McCormick.

McCormick is in line to start for Pittsburgh at some point, as long as he shows promise and continues to improve. He only played left guard in college, but he has said he is proficient on both sides of the line. Both of the Steelers starting guards will see their contracts expire within the next two years. Daniels is only under contract through the 2024 season, and it has already been speculated that Pittsburgh won't look to re-sign him. Meanwhile, Seumalo's contract expires following the 2025 season. 

McCormick allows the Steelers not to feel any pressure to sign either of their starting guards to new deals, as long as he performs at a high level and continues to show improvement. Going from the college level to the NFL is a big jump for any rookie, but especially for McCormick coming from South Dakota State where he didn't play against a lot of NFL talent. 

Steelers Could Be Repeating Their Mistakes With McCormick

During the Steelers' first practice of rookie minicamp on Friday, it was reported that both McCormick and Fautanu were playing on the right side of the offensive line. This should worry Steelers fans, since Pittsburgh continues to try to switch linemen from their natural positions and it rarely works. Kevin Dotson struggled during his time in Pittsburgh when he was forced to play left guard, so Pittsburgh traded him to the Los Angeles Rams. The Rams had him play his natural position of right guard, and he immediately became one of the highest graded interior linemen in the league and earned a three-year, $48 million extension. 

McCormick isn't expected to be a starter, so it might be a good thing that he is getting work in on the right side of the line. Pittsburgh probably wants him to be able to backup either side at the guard position. Fautanu playing right tackle allows Broderick Jones to move back to his natural position at left tackle, but fans should still be concerned due to Pittsburgh's history of using this strategy.