The Pittsburgh Steelers have finally made their first selection of the 2024 NFL Draft. After months of speculation, they stayed pat with the 20th overall pick and selected tackle Troy Fautanu out of Washington. The Steelers had multiple holes to fill along the offensive line at both the center and tackle positions, and they filled the need at tackle. It's always special to make your dreams come true and get drafted into the NFL, but it is even more special for Fautanu, as he was selected by the team he rooted for growing up.
Fautanu grew up in Henderson, Nevada, and Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin shared that Fautanu got his Steelers fandom from his father. Fautanu was infatuated with Troy Polamalu growing up, who was also a first round pick for the Steelers back in 2003. Tom Pelissero shared that Fautanu grew up a Steelers fan on X after the Steelers made the selection official during the 2024 NFL Draft.
Fautanu was born in 2000, so he got to see all of Polamalu's prime years with the Steelers, including his pick-six during the 2008 AFC Championship game against the Baltimore Ravens. He got to see all of the Steelers' best years as a fan since the turn of the century when Polamalu was a strong defensive leader for Pittsburgh.
Fautanu was one of the highest ranked tackles coming into the 2024 NFL Draft, as he was given a 75.5 grade by Pro Football Focus for his play during his 2023 season where he lost in the National Championship. Some have questioned whether or not his size is enough to play tackle at the NFL level, as he stands at 6'4" and weighs in at 317 pounds. It was rumored that some teams wanted to move him to the inside of their offensive line to left guard due to his lack of size, but the Steelers have two good guards; so it is likely Fautanu will still be suiting up at tackle for Pittsburgh.
Steelers Have A Decision To Make At Tackle
Pittsburgh traded up in 2023 to draft Broderick Jones with the 14th overall pick. He was initially drafted as a left tackle, and sat behind Dan Moore Jr. to begin the 2023 season before replacing Chukwuma Okorafor at right tackle. This was after Okorafor was benched for comments he made during a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Jones and Fautanu both have the natural position of left tackle, so now Pittsburgh has to decide whether or not they want to keep Jones on the right side, or move him back to his natural position, while Fautanu takes over at right tackle.
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