Coming out of the Week 15 win over the Miami Dolphins, the big story for the Pittsburgh Steelers wasn’t the second straight great performance from quarterback Aaron Rodgers, or the dominant defensive display the Black and Gold had against the explosive Miami offense.
Instead, it was all about the performance from left tackle Dylan Cook, who made his first career start under the bright lights of Monday Night Football on the North Shore.
Cook was outstanding in his first start, holding up well against Dolphins pass rusher Bradley Chubb. Cook didn’t allow a single pressure in the win, keeping quarterback Aaron Rodgers clean throughout.
For second-year right tackle Troy Fautanu, who spoke with WMBS Radio’s George Von Benko Friday in an interview that was aired Saturday, he wasn’t surprised by Cook’s performance at all because of what he’s seen behind the scenes.
“Yeah man, I wasn’t surprised, honestly,” Fautanu said of Cook, according to audio via the show’s Facebook page. “I’ve been here for two years and I’ve seen him play and I know the player he is and I really wasn’t surprised. He’s a baller.”
Cook certainly looked like a baller on Monday night against the Dolphins. Though the Steelers gave him some help initially with some chips to help him settle into the game, his play took over down the stretch.
Cook won every single rep against Chubb, holding him off the stats sheet. He also looked very good in the run game, too, letting his athleticism shine on zone runs. The former undrafted free agent offensive tackle out of Montana was able to get to the second level at times and seal off linebackers, and also showed explosion out of his stance to reach and run on outside zones.
The performance from the young offensive tackle earned praise from all over, from head coach Mike Tomlin to teammates like Rodgers and now Fautanu, and even longtime NFL analyst Brian Baldinger, who called Cook a potential answer in the future for the Steelers at left tackle.
We’ll see if Cook gets his second straight start after the great performance now that veteran Andrus Peat is back healthy, recovering from a concussion suffered in Week 14 against the Baltimore Ravens. Cook’s performance has seemingly earned him that opportunity, but it remains to be seen if the Steelers will give it to him.