Now that the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2023 season is getting underway after the team finished above .500 but failing to make the postseason last year, we turn our attention to the next chapter of Steelers football and everything that entails. One thing that it means is that some stock evaluations are going to start taking on more specific contexts as we get into the season, reflecting more immediate plusses and minus rather than trends over long periods. The nature of the evaluation, whether short-term or long-term, will be noted in the reasoning section below.
Player: T Broderick Jones
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: While it’s yet to be determined how permanent the move was on Thursday, the rookie first-round pick got his second opportunity to start a game. He played ahead of Chukwuma Okorafor at right tackle for what the latter said was a disciplinary punishment against him. But Jones played better there in one game than he had all season—perhaps even his entire career.
One way or another, chances are very good that Broderick Jones is the Steelers’ left tackle of the future. The way things are looking, he may start out on the right side, however. At least he made it an option after proving on Thursday night that he is capable of playing just as well there as on the left.
Jones played all of 34 collegiate snaps at right tackle over the course of his career at Georgia. He did tell reporters after he was drafted that he spent plenty of time repping at right tackle in practice, however, due to injury issues the Bulldogs had.
Assuming that’s true, it seemed to pay off, as he played well by all appearances against the Tennessee Titans at right tackle on Thursday night. It was his second start after playing at left tackle for an injured Dan Moore Jr. a couple games prior, and he seemed to perform equally well.
Most notable is the fact that the Steelers did not seem to limit him in any way or give him a great deal of extra help. They even had him pulling on multiple occasions, something they no doubt hope to take advantage of once fully installed into the starting lineup due to his athleticism.
Jones started at right tackle over Chukwuma Okorafor for what the veteran described as a disciplinary matter after he acted out in a way that he shouldn’t have during Sunday’s loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars. He admitted that he did not know for sure if this was a one-game punishment or if he could lose his starting job.
Given the inevitability of Jones entering the starting lineup, it is certainly plausible. We all anticipated that he would start at left tackle, especially given his lack of a background there—the team even moved Moore to the right side for a handful of snaps in the season opener when Okorafor was injured so that Jones could play on the left side—but that no longer appears to be a concern of theirs.
