When the Pittsburgh Steelers drafted C Zach Frazier in 2024, they hoped that he could be the next in a long line of great Steelers centers. Only time will tell if he’ll ever be mentioned alongside legends like Dermontti Dawson, Mike Webster, and Maurkice Pouncey. However, his rookie season could not have gone any better.
Per The 33rd Team, Frazier was the best pass-blocking rookie offensive lineman in the NFL last year. He was on the field for 513 pass-blocking snaps and only allowed 12 pressures. That is a pressure rate of 2.3 percent, 0.6 percent better than the second-best, Dallas Cowboys C Cooper Beebe. Frazier caught the attention of a lot of people who love watching offensive line play.
Just how good was Zach Frazier? His performance was good enough to put him third on Pro Football Focus’ center rankings ahead of the 2025 season.
“The Steelers hit it out of the park when they selected Frazier in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft,” Mason Cameron wrote. “At just 24 years old, he heads into his second year poised to build on an excellent rookie campaign during which he placed fourth in PFF overall grade (77.9) among qualifying centers. Frazier’s all-around grading profile is solid, as he places above the 75th percentile as both a pass protector and a run blocker.”
That’s darn impressive. Zach Frazier had an amazing rookie season as a center, which isn’t easy. It’s not just that he was one of the best rookie linemen in 2024. He was one of the better linemen in the league, period. And teammate G Isaac Seumalo, who made his first Pro Bowl in 2024, predicted that Frazier will be making that trip plenty of times in his career.
Seumalo isn’t the only offensive lineman praising Frazier’s play as a rookie. Former NFL OL A.Q. Shipley loves the effort he saw from Frazier’s tape. There are different types of successful offensive linemen. You can be the ultimate technician, especially if you’re playing tackle. Or you can be the nastiest, most competitive lineman. And that’s what Shipley sees in Frazier.
There is one notable name missing from the list: Recently retired Detroit Lions C Frank Ragnow. While Ragnow has been one of the absolute best centers in the game (if not the best), he chose to take care of himself and prioritize his health.
But even if Ragnow had been on PFF’s list, Zach Frazier still would have been one of the five best centers in the league. That’s incredibly high praise for a second-year player. Perhaps he can supplant the Baltimore Ravens’ Tyler Linderbaum this year, PFF’s second-best. And the Kansas City Chiefs’ Creed Humphrey is the best center on this list.
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