The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted offensive tackle Max Iheanachor with their first-round pick this year. Although he has good size, Iheanachor is still relatively new to football, so it might take him some time to adjust to the NFL. Also, he played almost exclusively at right tackle in college, and the Steelers need a left tackle. That leaves Ben Roethlisberger slightly worried about the selection.
“Where are they gonna put him?” Roethlisberger said Tuesday on his Footbahlin’ podcast. “I assume you’re gonna want him to play this year. I would hate for my first-round pick to be a project and be like, ‘In three to five years, he’s gonna be a stud.’ You do that with your second, third, and fourth.
“Your first-round pick, you have to anticipate him coming in and playing right now. That makes me a little nervous about the project… I don’t hate the pick. I just wonder if there wasn’t a more seasoned guy. This may end up being one of those ones where it’s like, ‘Wow, what a steal. What a diamond in the rough.’”
The Steelers’ offseason moves suggest they want to compete for a Super Bowl this season. They’ve added several veteran pieces, and they’re still pursuing Aaron Rodgers. Therefore, they were likely hoping to get an instant impact player with their first-round pick.
However, forcing Iheanachor to start immediately might be a mistake, especially if the Steelers aren’t sure if he’s going to play on the left or right side. They juggled Broderick Jones, who was also raw coming out of college, to start his career, hindering his development. They shouldn’t repeat that with Iheanachor.
That means picking a position and having him stick to it. If they put him at left tackle, then that means he’s switching positions. That could slow his progress even more, but it would keep the Steelers from shuffling any of their other pieces up front.
Conversely, if the Steelers play Iheanachor at right tackle, then that likely means that Troy Fautanu will move to left tackle. He played that position in college, so his transition might be easier. Still, Fautanu looked good at right tackle last year, and there’s no telling if moving him will hurt his development.
Despite Iheanachor’s inexperience, his flashes suggest he won’t take long to be a quality NFL player. Some of his best collegiate games came against top talent, including this year’s second overall pick, David Bailey.
A happy medium might be what’s best for Iheanachor. He doesn’t have to sit on the bench for the whole season, but maybe letting him watch the first few games would be most beneficial.
That’s assuming that he doesn’t earn the starting job throughout the rest of the offseason, though. Iheanachor could impress the coaches in training camp and the preseason. Even if he’s on the bench for Week 1, that’s not an indictment on his NFL future. Patience is important with rookies.