Pittsburgh Steelers rookie OT Broderick Jones may not have come into the season the starter, but he’s firmly established himself as the team’s best offensive tackle in recent weeks.
And he doesn’t appear to be leaving the starting lineup anytime soon.
Jones has started the last two games at right tackle in place of veteran Chukwuma Okorafor, who was benched for reportedly complaining about the run-game calls against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Pittsburgh opted to move Jones to the right side against the Tennessee Titans and keep OT Dan Moore Jr. on the left, being that Jones is a more natural fit at right tackle than Moore. The change has paid major dividends for Pittsburgh’s offense, especially its run game. The Steelers have rushed for 371 yards in their last two games combined with Jones starting on the right side of the offensive line.
Daniel Jeremiah, a former NFL scout and lead draft analyst for NFL Network, weighed in on Jones’ performance against the Green Bay Packers on Twitter, stating that the rookie is making the Steelers’ front office look pretty smart for trading up to draft him 14th overall in the 2023 NFL Draft.
“Steelers rookie OT Broderick Jones jumps off the screen when you look at all of their explosive runs,” Jeremiah wrote on Twitter. “He is dominating. Home run pick!!!”
Fellow NFL Network employee and league insider Ian Rapoport quote tweeted Jeremiah’s tweet about Jones, stating that the University of Georgia product jumps off the screen and is a natural people mover in the run game.
Jones has looked the part since getting thrust into action in Week Four against the Houston Texans, jumping in at left tackle for Moore, who suffered a knee sprain. He took his lumps in his first regular-season action, but also appeared to settle in as the game went on, generating a big push up front in the running game. Jones started the next game against the Baltimore Ravens on QB Kenny Pickett’s blindside, looking the part of a starting left tackle in the league. He helped Pittsburgh establish a running game against the Ravens while keeping Pickett clean in the pocket.
The Steelers have elected to keep Moore in the starting lineup and move Jones to the right side rather than have him play his more natural left tackle position. Through the last two weeks, it appears that the move hasn’t really fazed Jones, who looked even more comfortable at right tackle in his second start there. Merril Hoge said during a live stream of the Footbahlin podcast that he’s never seen a player change the direction of an offensive line the way Jones has, sparking the Steelers’ rushing attack as they repeatedly gashed the Packers on the ground.
Jones has cemented himself in the starting lineup going forward. The only question is whether Pittsburgh will opt to keep him on the right side or if it intends to move him back over to the left after the season has concluded. That decision will likely depend on how the Steelers feel about Moore as a starter past 2023, as he doesn’t have the versatility to start at either tackle spot like Jones does. That could prompt the Steelers to keep Jones on the right side unless they turn to the draft or free agency to find an upgrade over Moore, allowing Pittsburgh to move Jones back to the spot it initially drafted him to play.
