When the Pittsburgh Steelers selected Troy Fautanu in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, optimistic fans were hoping we had seen the last of Dan Moore Jr. with the starting unit. Moore's performance went from 'bad' in 2022 to 'worse' in 2023.
Unfortunately, the Steelers have a tendency of making things harder than they have to be.
This franchise has always valued veteran presence and leadership. As such, it's no surprise to see that Moore is still getting the nod with the starting unit. In the first Steelers training camp practice of 2024, Nick Farabaugh of PennLive reported that Dan Moore Jr. is getting the first look as the team's left tackle with Broderick Jones at right tackle.
Dan Moore Jr. at left tackle, Broderick Jones at right tackle to start the team walk through.
— Nick Farabaugh (@FarabaughFB) July 25, 2024
The Steelers are picking up right where they left off last year when it comes to their offensive tackle pecking order. I'm not surprised by this, just disappointed.
Steelers must make the switch at OT early in training camp
If there are plans to move Jones back to left tackle, where he played throughout his college career at Georgia, this should happen immediately. When Chukwuma Okorafor was benched last season, it was Jones, the rookie OT, who was forced to learn a new position, while Moore had the privilege of staying in his comfort zone at left tackle.
It's time for the seniority game to end.
Troy Fautanu was the 10th overall player on Marcus Mosher's 2024 NFL Draft Consensus Board, which is comprised of the average rankings of the top draft experts in the business. Meanwhile, Moore has been in the hot seat since the 2021 fourth-round pick was gift-wrapped the job as a rookie.
It's also worth mentioning that Fautanu turns 24 years old early in his rookie season. Why wait? Moore couldn't get the job done for three straight seasons as the team's starting left tackle. Does he have much room to go up in year four?
If the ultimate plan is to move Broderick Jones to left tackle and start Troy Fautanu at left tackle (and that appears to be the direction the team wants to go), the Steelers should simply rip the band-aid off and make it happen. These are the players the front office invested first-round picks in over the past two offseasons, and they are the future of the tackle position in Pittsburgh; not Dan Moore Jr.
I understand where the team is coming from by having Moore roll with the starters early at Steelers training camp. He's the veteran and he's done this before. However, Pittsburgh's opponents are finding ways to get their high draft picks on the field faster, and they are not willing to waste time on a valuable rookie contract.
At the end of the day, we know that Dan Moore is not going to be part of the plan at offensive tackle. I'm not going to be up in arms about the depth chart heading into Steelers training camp, but I would rather see Broderick Jones take as many snaps as he can get at the position he will be playing in 2024. The same goes for Troy Fautanu. Let's hope this decision is made soon.