Steelers Send Early Warning to Max Iheanachor; Position Change For Teammate

Now that the quarterback position is taking care of with Aaron Rodgers, the Pittsburgh Steelers have to sort out his protection during spring OTAs.

It could be a while before the Steelers trust Max Iheanachor enough to give him first-team reps.

The Steelers invested heavily in the offensive line during the draft, taking Iheanachor in the first round after watching the Philadelphia Eagles swoop in and take Makai Lemon.

Pittsburgh needed to take a tackle with Broderick Jones' future uncertain. (Jones was seen at Monday's practice, though he did not participate.)

It's appears quite possible that neither Jones nor Iheanachor will start at tackle in Week 1. 

Per Mike DeFabo of The Athletic, the first team looked like this : Mason McCormick  at left guard, Zach Frazier at center, Spencer Anderson at right guard and Dylan Cook at right tackle.

Oh, and Troy Fautanu was at left tackle.

Where was Iheanachor? 

With the third team.

Iheanachor was the featured right tackle at Arizona State. The Steelers appear willing to try and keep him on that side in the hopes that will get him on the field faster. However, his place on the depth chart was a warning for the first-round pick.

Pittsburgh is going to make him earn a starting spot, and he's not assured any playing time in the regular season after starting the offseason buried on the depth chart.

With Iheanachor on the right side, Fautanu is trying out the left side of the line. He thinks he can get to a good enough level to command the left side through reps this offseason.

“I personally don’t believe you really have a natural position,” Fautanu told reporters after practice. “If you work hard enough at something and you have enough reps, you’re going to get good at it.

"Obviously I played right for two years and have thousands and thousands of reps doing that. I got really comfortable there, but if I’m being asked to move to the left, then I can do it.”

The offensive line is obviously not set at this point. The Steelers need to try out several combinations this spring before getting an idea of what the starting five will look like in training camp.