The Steelers’ offensive line has spent the last four years getting heavier investment, and that work is starting to show at training camp. The group is deep, talented and, early in camp, one of the players quietly making the loudest impression is Mason McCormick.
McCormick has been one of the standouts in the one-on-one OL vs. DL work once the pads came on.
That’s where the real separating starts, and he’s handled himself well against some serious competition. In the second week of camp, he went up against four-time All-Pro Cameron Heyward and veteran newcomer Sebastian Joseph-Day, and he more than held his own.
Alex Kozora of Steelers Depot laid out a few of the matchups in his Day 5 training camp diary:
"Cam Heyward long arm into Mason McCormick. Good battle between the two...
Bull to rip by Sebastian Joseph-Day against McCormick, who seals him...
Heyward bull rushes McCormick, but Heyward loses his footing...
McCormick hops back to handle Joseph-Day's bull rush."
One-on-ones only tell part of the story, of course, but McCormick has looked strong in the full-team setting too. While plenty of attention has gone to the rookie class, Aaron Rodgers and the wide receiver group, McCormick has kept doing his work without much noise around it.
That quiet rise fits the path he’s taken. The 2024 fourth-round pick came from South Dakota State and made a huge jump to NFL competition, but the talent has been obvious. He tested as an exceptional athlete at the 2024 NFL Combine, and his size and testing produced a 9.96 Relative Athletic Score compared with NFL guard prospects, per MathBomb.
His game took a real step forward last season as well. McCormick showed better anchoring strength and more steady play snap to snap, which helped him improve his PFF grade from 57.7 as a rookie in 2024 to 72.9 in his second year in 2025. That 72.9 mark ranked 17th among 79 qualifying NFL guards.
Now he’s carrying that momentum into a contract year, with a chance to set himself up for a bigger payday after seeing what players like Joe Tippmann and Matthew Bergeron just got. He’s also making the move from right guard to left guard for the 2026 season, and so far there have been no signs that the transition is slowing him down at camp.
McCormick may not be among the most popular names on Pittsburgh’s offensive line right now, especially with the team recently drafting Max Iheanachor and Gennings Dunker in the first three rounds. But on the field, he’s been one of the best linemen in camp so far, and there’s little reason to think that will change anytime soon.
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