On an offense filled with young pieces, the Pittsburgh Steelers desperately need some leadership on that side of the ball moving forward.
They might just have that leader in rookie offensive tackle Broderick Jones, at least according to former Steelers defensive lineman Chris Hoke.
In the Steelers Extra Point show on KDKA-TV following the 31-17 loss in the Wild Card Round to the Buffalo Bills Monday in Orchard Park, Hoke compared Jones to an all-time Steelers great when it comes to his leadership qualities.
That player? Former center and future Hall of Honor inductee Maurkice Pouncey.
For Hoke, Jones provides that nasty, aggressive mentality that the offensive line needs. He brings the Steelers to the fight, and really sets the tone in the trenches.
“The last 10 games of the regular season, the Steeler averaged 145 yards rushing a game. Before Broderick Jones was put in the starting lineup, they were only averaging 80 yards a game. Do I think it was all him? No. But he brought a dawg mentality. He was really good in the run game and it was contagious and it permeated through the offensive line room,” Hoke stated regarding Jones, according to video via the Steelers’ YouTube page. “Where he’s got to improve is in his pass protection. He gave up some big pressures, a sack in this game. [Greg] Rousseau did a great job beating him inside. That’s what he’s got to work on.
“But I see a lot of Maurkice Pouncey qualities in Broderick Jones. I think he’s going to end up being a big leader for a lot of years ahead.”
Once the Steelers inserted Jones into the starting lineup in Week Nine against the Tennessee Titans, the run game improved dramatically, averaging 145 yards per game on the ground down the stretch, helping Pittsburgh get into the playoffs. Now, as Hoke pointed out, it wasn’t all Jones that turned the run game around.
That said, he helped out in a major way with his physicality and athleticism, allowing the Steelers to really lean in on the run game and take off offensively. The Steelers were a real force down the stretch running the football, and Jones played well in the run game.
Where he struggled though was in pass protection, hitting a rookie wall in that area of his game, really coming apart in pass protection. That was again the case in the wild-card loss to the Bills. Jones gave up an ugly sack to Buffalo’s Greg Rousseau on Mason Rudolph and allowed numerous other pressures as the Steelers struggled to hold up.
But even with the disappointing close to the season for the rookie, his future looks bright, especially from a leadership standpoint. He’s always looking to mix it up, taking the Steelers’ offensive line to the fight. He plays with that edge and wants to be the bully. That style is going to play well long-term in Pittsburgh on the field and from a leadership perspective.
He might still be trying to find his voice, but he has some very intriguing leadership traits that should help him become a key leader for a young offense moving forward, much like Pouncey was during his 11 seasons in Pittsburgh.
