Tag: Dan Moore

Former Steelers 1st-round pick benched versus Broncos

Rookie Troy Fautanu has replaced Broderick Jones in the starting lineup.

We never thought when the Pittsburgh Steelers selected offensive tackle Troy Fauntau in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, he would replace Broderick Jones in the starting lineup. But against the Denver Broncos this is exactly what has happened.

Jones was benched after three penalties on the same drive including a lazy holding call that negated a huge gain by wide receiver George Pickens. Veteran Dan Moore Jr. remains the starting left tackle and has played a stong game so far.

Last season, Jones replaced Chuks Okorafor in the starting lineup mid-season and played well but he’s clearly taken a step back this year.

https://twitter.com/RichieWalsh/status/1835426446094827977

The Steelers lead the Broncos 7-0 with just over seven minutes left to play in the first half.

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Steelers rookie getting 1st-team reps at Wednesday practice

The Steelers had rookie Troy Fautanu getting first-team reps in place of Dan Moore Jr. on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, we saw the return of rookie offensive tackle Troy Fautanu. With starting left tackle Dan Moore Jr. dealing with an ankle injury, Fautanu took first-team reps at right tackle and Broderick Jones moved over the left tackle in Moore’s spot.

The Steelers selected Fautanu in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft with the intention of him battling for the starting right tackle spot. This would allow Jones, the team’s first-round pick in 2023 to move to his natural position of left tackle.

However, a knee injury sidelined Fautanu and delayed the process. Now with Fautanu healthy, we could see him in the starting lineup this week against the Denver Broncos.

https://twitter.com/bepryor/status/1833951561711587694

If Fautanu starts on Sunday, he will be the second rookie offensive lineman for the Steelers. Pittsburgh plugged rookie center Zach Frazier into the starting lineup after Nate Herbig’s injury sent him to IR during the preseason.

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Mike Tomlin still pondering Steelers OT spots vs Falcons

Mike Tomlin won’t commit to which offensive tackle will play on which side this weekend.

There’s nothing like waiting until the last minute. As of Tuesday, when Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin spoke to the media, he isn’t sure which of his two starting offensive tackles will start on which side when they take on the Atlanta Falcons this Sunday.

For most of the preseason, Broderick Jones has lined up on the right side while Dan Moore Jr. has started on the left. The Steelers original plan at offensive tackle included rookie Troy Fautanu but a knee injury took him out of the fold long enough to complicate things.

The Steelers offensive line is already down starting right guard Isaac Seumalo and will be starting rookie center Zach Frazier. Not knowing where the offensive tackles will be lining up doesn’t inspire confidence this week when this offensive is predicated on being able to run the football.

We expect Jones to stay on the right until Fautanu returns but we aren’t convinced Moore is going to just give up his starting spot.

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Steelers OT says for now he’s staying on the right

The Steelers are still trying to sort out the offensive tackle situation ahead of Week One.

The offensive tackle position battle for the Pittsburgh Steelers was supposed to be different than this. After drafting Troy Fautanu in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, it was supposed to be him competing with Dan Moore Jr. with Broderick Jones moving to left tackle and the winner of Moore vs Fautanu being the right tackle.

Instead, Fautanu is hurt and the Steelers don’t know which side of the line Moore and Jones will be playing in Week One against the Atlanta Falcons.

Jones was asked where he thought he’d be playing versus Atlanta and he led off with a coy, “Gotta wait and see” but then followed it up that he has been working on the right and is preparing to be there in the first regular-season game.

Jones has had a rough go of it in the preseason. After a strong finish to his rookie campaign, Jones seems to have taken a step back, perhaps due to an elbow injury.

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Steelers rookie OT Troy Fautanu says he’s treating every training camp day like a game

Steelers rookie offensive tackle Troy Fautanu is ready to compete for a starting job.

The first to arrive at Pittsburgh Steelers training camp is rookie offensive tackle Troy Fautanu. The Steelers picked Fautanu with their first-round pick in the 2024 NFL draft and he’s taking training camp seriously even though he brought his guitar with him.

Fautanu was mobbed by the media upon his arrival and he made it clear that he is going to treat every day at training camp like a game day. Fautanu is in one of the bigger position battles here at Steelers training camp as he doesn’t against veteran Dan Moore Jr. for one of the starting tackle spots, opposite Broderick Jones.

We expect to see either Fautanu or Moore as the team’s starting right tackle when the season kicks off and Jones moved to the left side. Fautaunu is the future at right tackle but just like with Jones last season, no one expects the Steelers to rush him into the starting lineup.

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ESPN says Steelers rookie OT ‘improved tremendously’ during offseason

Troy Fautanu has shown steady improvement since joining the Steelers.

When the Pittsburgh Steelers went on the clock in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft, they had options. The Steelers had invested amount of time in the offseason scouting the top offensive tackles and they had their pick of several great ones. In the end they opted for former Washington offensive tackle Troy Fautanu and didn’t look back.

The Steelers just wrapped up OTAs and now in a month will get together for training camp. ESPN was asked to evaluate how each of the NFL’s first-round picks was in offseason workouts to this point, and Steelers writer Brooke Pryor shared her evaluation as well as some insight from Steelers offensive line coach Pat Meyer.

Although he primarily played left tackle at Washington, Fautanu spent most of his time working at right during the offseason program, and he said he expects to compete at right tackle when the team reports to Latrobe, Pennsylvania, for training camp next month. “Troy’s learned a lot of the different techniques very quickly,” offensive line coach Pat Meyer said. “The first couple days his timing was off because the speed of the game is different — now we don’t have any pads on yet, so nothing’s going to be determined until we get into camp — but his timing’s much better in terms of his get-off and run game and his sets and throwing his hands and being aggressive with his hands and whatnot. He’s improved tremendously from rookie minicamp to now.”

The Steelers are banking on Fautanu taking over the starting right tackle spot sooner rather than later and allowing Broderick Jones to move to the left side. With Dan Moore Jr. on the roster, it’s doubtful Pittsburgh will rush Fautanu into the starting lineup and will likely treat him similarly to how they did Jones as a rookie last season.

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OT Dan Moore calls new offense ‘oline friendly’

Dan Moore is battling to keep his starting spot but says the offense fits his style well.

You can tell just by listening to the players talk, this is going to be a very different Pittsburgh Steelers offense. The addition of new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith has already breathed new life into this unit and big changes are coming.

Offensive tackle Dan Moore Jr. spoke to the media on Wednesday and he called the offense very oline friendly with its emphasis on the power run game and play-action passing.

Moore seemed particularly upbeat and optimistic given he is currently fighting an uphill battle to hold onto his spot in the starting lineup. The Steelers drafted Troy Fautanu in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft and paired with Broderick Jones appear to be the future for the Steelers.

It is somewhat odd that a guy who has started 49 of 49 games in his young career is a longshot to be the starter this season but such is the nature of the NFL. Moore is set to hit free agency at the end of the season as well.

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Steelers rookie OT works at right tackle in Day 1 of minicamp

The Steelers seem to be preparing for a position switch for Broderick Jones.

One positional battle to keep an eye on this offseason for the Pittsburgh Steelers is offensive tackle. As of now the Steelers have three players competing for two starting spots with Dan Moore Jr. and Broderick Jones the incumbents and rookie Troy Fautanu the newcomer.

After one day of rookie minicamp, Fautanu was working at right tackle exclusively, which is a position change over his time at the University of Washington.

In 2023, Jones took the starting right tackle job over Chuks Okorafor at the midway point of the season and played very well. However, when General Manager Omar Khan talked about Jones, he made it clear Jones is the left tackle, which adds up with Fautanu getting in work on the right side. It would also mean Moore, who played last season on borrowed time could be on the way out.

Pittsburgh selected Fautanu in the first round of the 2024 NFL draft out of the University of Washington.

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Steelers OT Dan Moore Jr. Gets over $740k in performance-based pay

Dan Moore Jr. got a significant bonus from the performance-based pay program.

In 2023, Pittsburgh Steelers starting left tackle Dan Moore Jr. made $1,114,476 in salary. But as a former fourth-round NFL draft pick still playing on his rookie contract, the league awarded Moore $740,319 in additional salary as part of its performance-based pay program.

This isn’t to say Moore played well because he didn’t. However, Moore played 951 offensive snaps last season as the Steelers starting left tackle. According to Pro Football Focus, Moore was one of the worst qualifying offensive tackles in the NFL in pass blocking with a grade of only 39.7.

Pittsburgh has been actively scouting offensive tackles for the 2024 NFL draft which is a good sign the Steelers aren’t sold on Moore as the team’s long-term solution at offensive tackle.

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Steelers beat writer gives insight on the Dan Moore Jr. situation

The Steelers aren’t likely to replace Dan Moore Jr. in the starting lineup this season.

The Pittsburgh Steelers have turned over a huge number of players this offseason in an attempt to get this team on the winning track in the playoffs. One player who fans debate over a great deal is starting left tackle Dan Moore Jr. Many fans think replacing him is a top priority in the 2024 NFL draft but beat writer Dejan Kovacevic of DK Pittsburgh Sports offered up a counterpoint that many fans won’t like to hear.

The Steelers appreciate Dan Moore so much more than anyone outside their South Side walls. Don’t be anywhere near sure they’re aiming to replace him. Their priority on the offensive line’s at center and, within that, it’ll now shift to the NFL Draft.

Many NFL draft pundits have been mocking an offensive tackle like Georgia’s Amarius Mims to the Steelers in the first round but we’ve stuck to our guns that there are far greater needs like center and wide receiver. The Steelers released Chuks Okorafor which was the right move but just reinforced the notion that the Steelers are committed to Moore, at least for the upcoming season.

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