We’re still three days away from seeing the Steelers suit up for their first game action of the 2026 season. Even if most of Pittsburgh’s fans remain skeptical of the team’s ceiling this year — a sentiment I share, for what it’s worth — it’s important to remember that seasons can still be enjoyable and progress can be tracked even in the seasons that don’t end with hoisting the Lombardi trophy. While much is new with the team this year, the Black and Gold are running it back with Aaron Rodgers under
center. Whether you think that’s good or bad is entirely up to you, but for me, it means that once again I will be grading this upcoming season through the lens of player development. Last summer, I wrote that the young offensive line’s progression would be the story of the 2025 season, and that remains true for this campaign.
The Steelers have invested heavily in the offensive line since Omar Khan took over as general manager, and last year was a crucial moment for this unit. At this time last year:
- We were fairly certain that center Zach Frazier had “The Goods,” but we still wanted to know if he could be more durable after some injury concerns, and if he could build on an impressive but imperfect rookie season.
- It was a similar story with 2024 fourth-round guard Mason McCormick. Pressed to play sooner than expected because of an injury to James Daniels, McCormick showed he could hang as at least a replacement-level starter as a rookie. But 2025 would be key to showing if he was a player that could continue to improve or if he’d already tapped out his potential.
- 2024 first-round tackle Troy Fautanu was still largely a question mark after missing all but one game of his rookie season due to a knee injury.
- 2023 first-round tackle Broderick Jones had flashed moments through two seasons, but had also largely looked like a player still trying to figure out how to maximize all of his athletic potential. He entered the season needing to show major improvement if he hoped to have the Steelers pick up his fifth-year option following the year. (They ultimately did not.)
- It was all but certain that Isaac Seumalo was playing his final year in Pittsburgh, which did come to fruition this offseason with the veteran guard’s departure for Arizona.
While the results were mixed for these players during the 2025 season, the Steelers had to feel pretty good about how things were trending heading into the 2026 offseason. Frazier, Fautanu, and McCormick all performed like players the team should include in their long-term plans. The team also got the added bonus of seeing players like guard Spencer Anderson and tackle Dylan Cook prove that they could be capable starters, at least in the short term, meaning the team had more flexibility with how they would approach cementing the final two starting spots for both 2026 and again with how they approach the 2027 offseason.
But you don’t have to just take my word for it. Bleacher Report’s Brandon Thorn is one of the most respected — if not THE most respected — analysts in the media when it comes to offensive line play. I know from reading some of the comments our readers leave that many of you are wary of “(Insert name analyst) ranks Steelers player” articles, but I find Thorn’s work to be well researched and informative. His interviews with players and coaches in the offensive line world are often insightful and teach me more about the game.
Thorn recently graded 175 offensive linemen as part of Bleacher Report’s NFL 1000 series. Players were broken down and ranked by position based on a five-trait grading system. Those traits were: pass protection (25), run blocking (20), play strength/anchor (20), movement skills (20), and hand usage (15). Thorn included five Steelers in his grades: Frazier, Fautanu, Jones, McCormick, and Cook.
It should come as little surprise to Steelers fans that Zach Frazier received the highest grade and praise among Pittsburgh linemen. Thorn graded Frazier out as the second-best center in the NFL — trailing only Kansas City’s Creed Humphrey, as well as the 12th-best lineman in the NFL overall.
Fautanu also received a favorable grade. Despite playing on the right side last season, Thorn included Fautanu with the left tackle group, ranking him as the 10th-best at the position and the 25th-best lineman in the NFL. Fautanu received his best grades as a pass protector (20 out of 25) and for his movement skills (17 out of 20).
Thorn quote: “Fautanu is an explosive, aggressive blocker with good length, high-end movement skills and one of the league’s best snatch-trap techniques, allowing him to steal leverage and knock rushers off their feet when they lean into him or are lazy with their hands.”
McCormick was dinged some for his athletic imitations, but was about league average as Thorn’s 17th-ranked left guard and 90th overall lineman. His running blocking (14 out of 20) and play strength (14 out of 20) were the traits Thorn highlighted most positively.
Thorn quote: “He is not an overwhelming physical talent, but his active hands, quick refits and excellent strain allow him to stay attached, die slowly when initially beaten and prevent clean sheds. McCormick displays enough play-strength and movement ability to function across concepts, while his leverage, toughness and hand activity make him more difficult to discard than his raw traits suggest… McCormick is a classic greater-than-the-sum-of-his-parts starter whose technique, effort and consistency make him a net positive despite a capped ceiling.”
Despite playing in just five career games, all coming late in the 2025 season, Thorn had Dylan Cook graded higher than Broderick Jones. This isn’t totally surprising; I think most Steelers fans would agree with that assessment even with such a small sample size. Thorn ranked Cook as the 28th-best left tackle and 135 overall. He graded Cook’s top skills as pass protection (15 out of 25) and his movement skills (13 out of 20).
Thorn quote: “Cook showed better pass-protection feel than expected, especially with his positional leverage, strike-timing and ability to use a snatch-trap technique for clean wins. He is sturdily built with solid movement skills and enough pop to create jolt when his hands land on time. Limitations show up more in the run game, where he can lean into contact, lose balance when the picture changes post-snap, and get shed before sustaining.”
Jones, meanwhile, was graded as the 34th-best left tackle and 153rd out of 175 linemen graded. Jones scored best in movement and play strength (both 13 out of 20), but was graded as subpar in pass (12 out of 25) and run blocking (12 out of 20), and he received a dismal grade for hand usage (7 out of 15). Having watched a ton of Steelers offensive line All-22 tape the past three seasons myself, I can assure you the hands usage grade is fair and accurate.
Thorn quote: “Jones remains a solid mover with pop in his hands, but his technique remains too erratic. He will duck his head, throw his hands into contact and open quick access across his face, while his run-game sustain is inconsistent once defenders survive initial contact… his current profile is an inconsistent, guardrail-dependent tackle with major health and reliability concerns.”
Overall, Thorn estimates the Steelers’ offensive line has two top-10 players at their position in Frazier and Fautanu. A third, McCormick, was graded as league average, but considered a net positive. That seems like a fair and encouraging assessment for a team that spent another first-round pick on a high-upside tackle in Max Iheanachor, and is also hoping one of Spencer Anderson or third-round selection Gennings Dunker will develop into the other starting guard spot.
The Steelers might not yet have their franchise quarterback, but when he gets here, he’ll hopefully be protected by one of the best young lines in the league.
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