After only registering one sack during his rookie season, Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Jarvis Jones knew exactly what he needed to do during the offseason in order to change that moving forward into 2014.
“Football is a game of inches so you want to be as big, as strong, and as fast as you can,” said Jones near the conclusion of the 2013 season. “That’s something I really need to focus on in the offseason and over the course of these next three games and continue to get better.”
According to Scott Brown of ESPN.com, Jones said Tuesday during the first OTA practice of the 2014 season that while he hasn’t added any weight since last year, that he has indeed gotten stronger.
Jones started eight games for the Steelers in 2013 after being drafted in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft out of Georgia and while he only wound up recording the one sack and 40 total tackles at right outside linebacker, he did appear to get a lot more comfortable in the defense as the season progressed.
The Steelers pass defense suffered once again in 2013 due to the lack of consistent pressure put on opposing quarterbacks by their front seven and Jones will be expected to help drastically change that in his second season.
