The Pittsburgh Steelers traded up in the first round from 17 to 14 to land T Broderick Jones. While he did not start immediately, he logged 11 starts and 767 snaps. Jones came into the league still somewhat raw, and you could see that in his play. Many believe he must move to the left side to reach his full potential after taking over the right side.
General manager Omar Khan made it very clear that the Steelers still view Jones as a left tackle. However, even he cautioned that his move to left tackle is an eventuality, not necessarily imminent. Ideally, the Steelers want to find a right tackle this year and move Jones to the left side right away.
They will have much more clarity on the matter following the 2024 NFL Draft, perhaps the first round. It seems that tackle is the position they’re most likely to address. Amarius Mims is the popular choice right now, and he profiles as a right tackle, allowing them to move Jones.
As for Jones himself, he is clearly extremely talented, but he still has work to do. One can argue that he did not finish the season strong, particularly lapsing in his efforts in pass protection. He has road-grading qualities as a run blocker, but he lacks consistency even in the hallmark of his game.
None of that is surprising, however, because the Steelers knew that Jones lacked experience. They didn’t even trust him to enter the starting lineup right away, and they ended up sticking him on the right side.
He battled Dan Moore Jr. throughout the offseason for the left tackle job, but he lost. After debuting impressively in that spot while Moore missed time due to injury, the Steelers likely put things in motion. I still don’t fully buy the explanation for Chukwuma Okorafor’s benching, likely a pretext for getting Jones on the field.
No doubt the offensive line as a whole improved after Jones entered the starting lineup. The run game certainly performed much better in the second half of the season, and he played a role there. Again, though, consistency there is the sticking point.
It should be said that Jones’ rookie season probably deserves handicapping with respect to grading. The reality is he spent the vast majority of the offseason practicing at left tackle to compete for that job. He got very little work at right tackle before he ended up starting there.
If he gets a full offseason practicing wherever he’s going to start, he should be all the better for it. Ideally, that comes on the left side, but a full offseason practicing right tackle will make him a better right tackle as well, and there are worse things in the world.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are weeks away from the 2024 NFL Draft, which means it’s time to review last year’s class. The first under new general manager Omar Khan and assistant Andy Weidl, their class generally garnered favorable reviews. Of the seven players they drafted, notably, all of them remain with the team. Additionally, three of them are starters (arguably four) and five in total are significant contributors.
