Steelers Now
Before the dust had even settled for the Pittsburgh Steelers last season, Aaron Rodgers showered praise on Zach Frazier, saying after the team’s Wild Card playoff loss to the Houston Texans that the young center has “a really bright future in the league.”
The national media is beginning to arrive at the same conclusion about the third-year West Virginia product.
“Film heads love Frazier, who might simply be the best offensive lineman still on a rookie contract,” ESPN’s Benjamin Solak wrote Wednesday. “NFL Next Gen Stats had Frazier with a 2.7% QB pressure rate surrendered last season — the single best mark of any offensive lineman with at least 300 snaps.”
Frazier, a second-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, has been the team’s offensive line fulcrum for the past two seasons. Pro Football Focus tagged him with a 73.5 overall grade last season, eighth-best out of 40 players at his position. He could possibly enter this upcoming season as the only starting Steelers offensive lineman in the same spot as the previous go-round.
Tackle Troy Fautanu and guard Mason McCormick played to Frazier’s right last campaign, but appear to be flipping to the other side.
“Frazier’s run blocking is just as impressive as his pass blocking,” Solak said. “With the heavy anchor and core strength of a dominant supersized guard, as well as the quick feet and sharp angles of an undersized center, Frazier unlocks the full menu of run concepts for Pittsburgh — per ESPN’s numbers, the Steelers ran the common run concepts (outside zone, inside zone, duo, power, etc.) at league-average rates.
“His experience snapping the ball to Aaron Rodgers is certainly helping the mental side of his game as well. Of all the players on this list, Frazier would be my bet to eventually become the best player at his position in the NFL.”
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Analyst Sets Sky-High Bar for Steelers Zach Frazier
