Steelers Name Starting Right Tackle

Steelers News Steelers Name Starting Right Tackle Chris Ward Follow | Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Dylan Cook in a game against the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 4, 2026 -- Ed Thompson / Steelers Now The Pittsburgh Steelers released their first official depth chart of the season, and Dylan Cook is slotted as the team's starting right tackle. Head coach Mike McCarthy stopped short of naming Cook as the starter during his Monday press conference. But he hinted that the veteran beat rookie Max Iheanachor for the job. Iheanachor missed the team's first two preseason games with an undisclosed injury — which appeared to be a neck or shoulder ailment. The time missed set him back in the battle with Cook. McCarthy said Iheneachor has been impressive but is being cautious due to the time missed. 'Well, he's an injured player. You've got injuries, players miss games because of injuries, business situations, whatever the criteria is. That's availability and accountability. That's the most important part of this, and being available every single day is huge, especially if you're a rookie, a first-time player,' McCarthy explained. 'There's so much to love about Max [Iheanachor] just in the time that he's been out there. It's impressive. Make no doubt about that, he can play, but he hasn't played. So, it's important to get ready. This is pro football. This is Week 1. They're looking at their matchup opportunities just like we're looking at them. Those things factor in how you set a game plan.' Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Max Iheanachor during a practice on Aug. 24, 2026. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now Iheanachor made his NFL debut in the preseason finale against the Buffalo Bills. 'We wanted to get him about 20 plays tonight and then we felt that we got we got to that point, we got him an extra series, so I'm not sure what his count came up, but most important thing is he to got to play,' McCarthy said after the 28-27 loss. 'I mean, he needs to play. So just the conditioning of it, the speed of it, coming up here and playing on the road I think is awesome for a first-time lineman do that. 'The crowd was good there at the end. I thought the two-minute drill for our young guys to hear the crowd noise was a really good experience.' Iheanachor had a solid debut but he did get beat by Andre Jones for a sack. 'I saw what happened on the sack. I think it was just more on his set,' McCarthy said. 'He was trying to be too aggressive. It almost looked like he was in a three-step set versus a five-step.' Cook originally entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2022 after finishing his college career at Montana. He joined the Steelers the next season, where he has continued developing on the practice squad before being called to the active roster in 2025. Cook appeared in a career-high five games, making four starts while filling in at both tackle spots. He played 291 offensive snaps and continued to establish himself as one of Pittsburgh's top reserve offensive linemen. Alan Saunders provided reporting from Pittsburgh.