March 14, 2026, 5:05 a.m. ET<\/p>\n
The Pittsburgh Steelers<\/a> have had quite the offseason so far, with meaningful and well-received acquisitions. They’ve addressed important needs at wide receiver<\/a>, running back, defensive line, cornerback, and safety. Furthermore, they’ve yet to use all 12 of their draft picks in the upcoming NFL Draft, signaling just how strong their free-agent period transactions have been up to this point.<\/p>\n Despite already patching many holes, there remains at least one pivotal to the offense’s success at any level in the upcoming 2026 season: left guard.<\/p>\n We’re a little over a month from the first overall selection, but there are a handful of starting-caliber guards<\/a> yet to be signed. Which one Pittsburgh will sign remains to be seen (if at all), but these four would not only come at a reasonable price but also immediately plug in as a Week One starter along the offensive line.<\/p>\n 1. Wyatt Teller, Age 31, Cleveland Browns<\/p>\n Recently concluding a seven-year tenure with the Cleveland Browns, Teller proved to be a mauler in run blocking, physical at the point of contact. His greatest strength is supporting the run game, thoroughly executing his assignments in opening lanes and pulling as a guard, all guided by a wide base and raw power. Pass protection may be more of a concern, as Teller finished with just a 53.1 rating from Pro Football Focus in 2025, though in years past, he has certainly been dependable. Possesses strong hand usage and upper body strength when latching on inside and moves surprisingly well for his size.<\/p>\n Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.<\/a>2. James Daniels, Age 28, Miami Dolphins<\/p>\n A former Steeler who was signed under the Kevin Colbert era of general managing in the 2022 offseason, Daniels might very well be a bargain on the cheap, assuming health and availability are factored in. In 2024, with Pittsburgh, he suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon tear in week four, and the following year, he suffered another season-ending injury to the left pectoral muscle, sidelining him from Week one. When on the field, Daniels was ranked as the best overall guard by Pro Football Focus in his last season with the Steelers<\/a>, finishing with an impressive 92.9 grade. He boasts elite athleticism, moving fluidly in space, pulling, and running in the outside zone, and strong football IQ, quickly identifying blitzes and defensive rotations. He excels most in pass protection, rarely allowing sacks, and has an outstanding knee bend that is rooted in sound technique.<\/p>\n 3. Brady Christensen, Age 29, Carolina Panthers<\/p>\n Similar to James Daniels, Christensen is also coming off a season-ending injury that was rupturing his Achilles tendon in Week eight. His recovery timeline is relatively unknown, but there’s no denying that when healthy, his positional versatility is elite, having played all five positions on the offensive line throughout his career. He is exceptionally athletic at 6’6 and 300 pounds, with fluid lateral movement and explosive movement out of a stance. Football IQ is solid, able to adapt mentally at any position, and communicate at a high level. Run blocking is where Christensen thrives, angling his body well as a position blocker and pulling in gap schemes, earning him a 70.1 grade from Pro Football Focus in 2025.<\/p>\n 4. Joel Bitonio, Age 34, Cleveland Browns<\/p>\n Another long-tenured Cleveland Brown, Bitonio, has been with the team since 2014 and is arguably the best available guard right now. While his age might make some hesitant, he is one of the best in pass protection. receiving a 96.4 grade from Pro Football Focus, which ranked third in the entire league. He’s still very much an effective blocker and puller in space and quick on his feet in zone-blocking schemes. As someone with superb technique, Bitonio’s hand usage and footwork are excellent. Mental errors are a rarity in his case (just one penalty over 1,000 snaps last season), and on top of that, he uses his immense football IQ to diagnose blitzes and stunts before they occur.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"March 14, 2026, 5:05 a.m. ET The Pittsburgh Steelers have had quite the offseason so far, with meaningful…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":811850,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2055],"tags":[95878,7,6,520,57,2360,96718,96719,426,95882,108269,108368,95896,95888,95906,96720,96008,96071,95883,95881],"class_list":{"0":"post-811849","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-pittsburgh-steelers","8":"tag-accessfree","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-nfl","11":"tag-pittsburgh","12":"tag-pittsburgh-steelers","13":"tag-pittsburghsteelers","14":"tag-sstssportsnflsteelers","15":"tag-sstsnsteelers","16":"tag-steelers","17":"tag-tagamerican-football","18":"tag-tagjames-daniels","19":"tag-tagjoel-bitonio","20":"tag-tagnational-sports","21":"tag-tagnfl","22":"tag-tagoverall-positive","23":"tag-tagpittsburgh-steelers","24":"tag-tagsmg-listicle","25":"tag-tagsmg-timely","26":"tag-tagsports-news","27":"tag-typestory"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116227493294403633","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/811849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=811849"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/811849\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/811850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=811849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=811849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=811849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}