The Pittsburgh Steelers are preparing for the 2024 regular season, but before the real games begin, the team has to head to training camp back at Saint Vincent College in order to fine tune their skills. As we here at SCN prepare you for the start of camp, we give you a series called “30 Scenarios in 30 Days” which gives you a Steelers scenario every day leading up to the start of camp.

It is simple how it works. We provide you the scenario, reasons why it will or won’t happen, and then our prediction for what we think will take place.

Let’s get to the scenario…

Scenario: No rookies will start Week 1 for the Steelers in 2024

Why it will happen: Since the scenario is a negative, saying it will happen is the stance that no rookies will start the first week of the season. The reason that there won’t be rookies starting the first week is the Steelers have been avoiding it at all costs. Looking strictly at players that were selected in the draft, the Steelers had none of their rookies start in Week 1 in 2023, and the only one who started in 2022 was wide receiver George Pickens. His start came mainly because of the personnel package on the first play as Pickens only started one of the first three games and three of the first seven games. It just so happens he did start in Week 1 but was only targeted three times where he had one reception for 3 yards. The Steelers intentionally have been attempting to hold out their draftees from starting until they are several games into the season. While there are a number of reasons to do so, the most reasonable belief is to try to emulate more of the length of the college season for their first year and try to avoid the infamous “rookie wall.”

Other factors when it comes to starting as a rookie is how high they were drafted and what position they play. While positions such as wide receiver, cornerback, defensive line, and a variety of others have a changing number of players at the position on the field depending on the personnel package and/or a rotation of players. When it comes to other positions, such as offensive line and quarterback, often these players are either on the field for every snap or not seeing any action. When these are the positions taken at the top of the draft, something the Steelers have done since 2022, their participation often has them not seeing action for the first several weeks.

Why it won’t happen: Even though the Steelers have had only one drafted player start the first week of the season the last two years, it really comes down to who grabs a starting job. Although I could use the example of the 2021 season where five drafted players started the first week of the season, that was an anomaly based on the Steelers lack of quality free agent signings due to the decrease in the salary cap. But if a player is ready and wins the job, they need to be on the field. While players such as quarterback and offensive line were mentioned before about not starting because they would be playing the entire game, this could also be an advantage because the Steelers need to get them on the field. And if the player needs to be on the field at one of these positions, then they need to start. Holding them out simply for their own benefit is difficult to measure if it’s been successful simply because it’s an either/or situation and the way the Steelers didn’t play it can only have an assumed result.

Prediction: Although I am in the camp that I think holding a player out at the beginning of their rookie year to ease them into things does have its benefits, doing so to play someone who is simply not as quality as the rookie option seems foolish. But when it comes to the 2024 season, it’s really about the individual players.

Personally, I don’t think Troy Fautanu will start this season how things sit right now, but how things play out in training camp could change everything. I think the Steelers will stick with Dan Moore at left tackle and Broderick Jones at right tackle as they continue to get Fautanu acclimated to the right side. When it comes to the second selection by the Steelers in the draft, I think this is the best chance for a rookie to start the very first game. If Zach Frazier shows he is ready to go, much like Maurkice Pouncy did back in 2010, then he needs to start the season. As for the Steelers next to draft picks in Roman Wilson and Payton Wilson, they play positions where they will get playing time at the beginning of the season but likely will not be on the field for the first snap of the game.

If I were to suggest any other player who could start for the Steelers the first week of the season, outside of unpredictable injury forcing someone into action, I think undrafted rookie free agent Beanie Bishop has a chance to make the 53-man roster and be used in some subpackages. With the suspension of Cam Sutton to start the season, this opens the door for someone else to grab the job and it’s not outside of the realm of possibilities that Bishop could be the one to do so. This would at least have him with the possibility of being on the field for the first snap if the Steelers are in the right subpackage.

To give a definitive answer, I am going to disagree with a scenario as I am hopeful that center Zach Frazier is simply too good to keep off the field.

Miss a scenario? Check out yesterday’s scenario below, and be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for training camp.

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