The Pittsburgh Steelers’ injuries on the offensive line continue to mount. On Saturday, the Steelers placed rookie right tackle Troy Fautanu on injured reserve after the first-rounder suffered a knee injury in practice on Friday.
Fautanu is the third major injury Pittsburgh has suffered on the offensive front, as center Nate Herbig is out for the year with a torn rotator cuff, while offensive guard Isaac Seumalo has yet to play this season due to a pectoral injury. Another former first-round pick in Broderick Jones is expected to replace Fautanu on the right side.
The former Washington Husky was selected with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Fautanu won the Morris Trophy in 2023, and was a First Team All-Pac 12 player who registered the fifth-best PFF pass-blocking grade among FBS offensive tackles with an 88.2. He allowed just two sacks in 1,161 pass-blocking snaps over the past two seasons.
The other facet of this unfortunate development has to do with the quarterback situation. With a short-handed offensive line, it could reinforce the idea in Mike Tomlin’s mind that the Steelers should continue to move forward with the mobile Justin Fields as opposed to the 35-year-old Russell Wilson when he heals from his calf injury. The 2-0 Steelers play host to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday.