Steelers general manager Omar Khan came into the 2024 NFL Draft with one goal in mind. And he executed it to perfection.
The groundwork for replenishing a depleted offensive line actually began last year. With Khan’s first ever draft pick at the helm for Pittsburgh, he drafted tackle Broderick Jones out of Georgia. He also signed free agent guard Issac Seumalo, who spent several years blocking across the state in Pennsylvania.
The work was far from done, however. With additional help still needed, the Steelers needed to add a center after releasing Mason Cole, and they needed someone to flank him as well. Khan got both his guys in the opening two rounds of this year’s draft.
The Steelers benefitted from a wonky draft that saw some names drop, including Troy Fautanu, who Pittsburgh snagged at 20th overall. Fautanu is going to fit in nicely, and not just because he has adored this team for years.
Fautanu is a very versatile player. Depending on how other things shake out, Fautanu could end up in a few different places, but luckily for us, we don’t have to try him out at center.
With their second round pick, Khan and the Steelers were patient, and picked center Zach Frazier with the 51st pick of the draft. Frazier was branded as one of the most physical and toughest players in this draft class, and he will now fill a glaring need for the Steelers.
Frazier is by far a team-first guy. While in college at WVU, he broke his leg on a play, and tried to crawl and hobble his way off the field so that his Mountaineers would not have to take a timeout to help him get out of the game.
Is that the smartest thing to do, from a human being perspective? Probably not. But no one can ever question this guy’s dedication and loyalty to his team.
Frazier is a slightly controversial pick, only due to the fact that wide receiver Adonai Mitchell was still on the board at the time, and he would fill a different glaring hole in the Steelers’ offense.
I’ll be honest, I was very interested in bringing Michell in. He’s the flashier, more attractive pick. It’s a hell of a lot easier to get excited over a wide receiver than it is for a center. But Khan made the more responsible choice; there are other options at wide receiver in this class, but Frazier was the guy the Steelers needed.
Mitchell was selected with the very next pick.
Frazier and Fautanu become the latest in an entirely reworked offensive line that has the makings to be a franchise group for the next several years. They have needed stability, particularly at the center position ever since Maurkice Pouncy retired.
Most of all, however, the Steelers practiced the utmost of patience with both these picks. It would have been easy to try and trade up in either round, but particularly in the first round, where Fautanu wasn’t originally supposed to get close to Pittsburgh’s spot.
The same can be said for Zach Frazier. As the picks drew closer, it would have been easy to pull the trigger and make no mistake that they snagged Frazier in the draft, but by waiting, they didn’t sacrifice any other draft capital. And by not doing that, it allowed them to take somebody like Roman Wilson, who will help fill that wide receiver void on the team.
It was som real tidy work done by the Steelers, who are far from done in this year’s draft.
(Featured photo of Troy Fautanu by Brandon Sloter/Image Of Sport/Getty Images)
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