The Steelers are now back at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, facing down a long regular season that looks a lot more promising given how things have gone leading up to it. Finishing just above .500 last year, they anticipate being able to compete with any team in the league this season with second-year QB Kenny Pickett leading the way.
They’ve done a great deal to address what they identified as their shortcomings during the offseason, which included addressing the offensive and defensive lines as well as the secondary and the inside linebacker room, which is nearly entirely different from last year. The results have been positive so far.
Even well into the regular season and beyond, there are going to be plenty of questions that need answered. When will the core rookies get to play, or even start? Is the depth sufficient where they upgraded? Can they stand toe-to-toe with the Bengals and the other top teams in the league? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout the season, as we have for many years.
Question: Did Broderick Jones’ performance against the Ravens just win him the starting job?
For the first time in his NFL career, Steelers first-round LT Broderick Jones started a game. The question is, when will the next game be that he doesn’t start, if any? Taken 14th overall after Pittsburgh traded up to get him, he was destined to be the left tackle of the future, but he sat behind starter Dan Moore Jr. for the first four games.
Moore sat out yesterday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens due to a knee injury, giving the rookie the opportunity to get into the starting lineup for the first time. And on the whole, on a first pass-through, he seemed to hold up rather well.
Although Baltimore’s best pass-rushers are currently sidelined due to injury, a fact that shouldn’t be ignored, Jones played competitively and consistently in a huge game. I’m not sure that he was responsible for giving up any pressures, to be honest with you.
A report last week indicated that Moore could miss some time, suggesting that Jones could still be starting after the bye week purely due to injury. But with the way that he played in comparison to the quality of play at the position over the first month of the season, the coaches may feel it’s time to make the switch.
There’s a good chance they were trying to hold through to the bye week, anyway, which is a time that teams can reset, analyze, and teach some fundamentals that are lacking. Transitioning the rookie into the starting lineup on a full-time basis at this time would be wise if he is prepared for it.
But it’s the coaches who decide if he’s going to be the one out there or not, once Moore is healthy. He’s going to have to be at least until then. But we’ll have to see. He could start his next game and stink up the place and then Moore is back in the saddle again.
