Steelers Rookie Zach Frazier Welcomes The Pressure That Comes With Adding To Pittsburgh's Elite Center Lineage

The Pittsburgh Steelers seem to have finally put the finishing touches on their offensive line that they have been working on for the last several years. They got a tackle in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft for the second year in a row, and Zach Frazier luckily fell to them with the 51st overall pick in the second round. Frazier is expected to be the Steelers' starting center immediately, as he is the only true center on the team that is expected to make the final 53-man roster.

Frazier was seen as a pro-ready player going into the draft, and it was even speculated that the Steelers would need to trade up for him if they had any hopes of landing him on Day 2. Luckily, General Manager Omar Khan stayed put at 51, and the West Virginia product fell to him. Frazier now joins the Steelers organization, where a long line of elite centers have played before him. Pittsburgh's rookie minicamp began on Friday, and Frazier spoke to the media about what the pressure is like to make the center position great again in Pittsburgh.

"Yeah, I mean it puts a little bit of extra pressure on me, but I'm just going to work as hard as I can, try to put my head down and you know, just work."

Pittsburgh's run of elite centers starts all the way back in 1964 with Ray Mansfield, who won two Super Bowls with Pittsburgh and was an All-Pro twice. Mike Webster was drafted by the Steelers in 1974. He went on to win four Super Bowls with Pittsburgh and was an eight time All-Pro. He is considered one of the best centers in NFL history and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1997. 

After Webster came Dermontti Dawson, who played with the Steelers from 1988 through 2000. He never saw the same levels of team success in the postseason that the guys who came before him did, as Pittsburgh only went to one Super Bowl that they lost during his playing days. Dawson still made an impact on the NFL though, as he was an All-Pro six times and was named to the 1990s All-Decade Team. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2012. 

The Steelers were also set up nicely at the center position in the 2000s and 2010s with Jeff Hartings and Maurkice Pouncey. Hartings won one Super Bowl and was named an All-Pro twice during his time with the Steelers, while Pouncey was an All-Pro five times and started every single game he ever played in his career. He is also a member of the 2010s All Decade Team, and should eventually become a strong candidate to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. 

Steelers' Zach Frazier Needs To Continue The Legacy At The Center Position In Pittsburgh

All of the best teams the Steelers have ever had were led by a great center. The teams in the 1970s had Mansfield or Webster, and the Super Bowl XL team had Hartings. It's clearly a very important position to have a great player at in order to find success. The past four Super Bowl champions had a Pro Bowl or All-Pro center on their roster: the Kansas City Chiefs had Creed Humphrey, the Los Angeles Rams had Brian Allen, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers had Ryan Jensen. 

Center is a key piece on a lot of championship rosters, and the Steelers think they finally got their All-Pro center of the future. Pittsburgh is obviously trying to win now, and Frazier will need to contribute immediately, and at a high level, for Pittsburgh to do that. Not only should Frazier be feeling pressure to continue the strong line of centers in Pittsburgh, but he should be feeling the pressure to be a strong contributor of a deep playoff run.