It remains to be seen whether or not Pittsburgh Steelers rookie Broderick Jones will be pressed into service for tomorrow night’s game against the Cleveland Browns. While RT Chukwuma Okorafor was listed as a full participant in Saturday’s practice and was not given an injury designation, it has not been reported that he has cleared the concussion protocol.
Should he fail to do so by tomorrow night, then it is likely Jones will have to start there, even though he had not practiced at right tackle at all this offseason prior to last week. When Okorafor exited last Sunday’s game late, the Steelers even moved LT Dan Moore Jr. over to the right side—and he promptly gave up a sack.
They are hoping for a little better, a little more comfortable, from Jones if he were to be called upon. Moore even admitted that the rookie looks more natural adapting to playing on the right side than he did working there earlier this year.
Asked if he agrees with his teammate’s assessment, a smiling Jones said that it was “probably” true, via Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I may be just a little more athletic than Dan. We’re not going to go there”.
He is more athletic than Moore, of course, which is one of the reasons he was drafted in the top half of the first round and Moore was a mid-round draft pick. Pittsburgh does want to highlight Jones’ athleticism in their offense once he does crack the starting lineup, which could open up new avenues in terms of what they can run in the screen game, for example.
The rookie played all of 34 college snaps at right tackle during his time with the Georgia Bulldogs, but he has also talked about the fact that he still practiced there regularly because of injuries that always seemed to arise at the position, even while starting at left tackle.
He is vastly more experienced playing on the right side but feels comfortable enough if asked to play on the right side. “It is a difference”, he admitted, “but not that huge of a difference that it will hinder me from playing to the best of my ability”.
Of course, even if Jones does start at right tackle, it’s only temporary in every sense. The Steelers’ long-term goal for him is to play left tackle. The only thing he gains by starting on the opposite side is getting some familiarity with the nuances of the game at the NFL level, including the speed and the level of competition.
But one would imagine that any athleticism he shows on the right side should be readily transferrable whenever he gets to start on the left, where he is destined. He’s not going to get stuck on the right side, or at least I can’t imagine that situation to arise, so how well he can demonstrate his flexibility is only of limited long-term value.
