The Pittsburgh Steelers used to have a reputation as a bruising and gritty football team that would win games on the ground rather than through the air. For the past few seasons, that has not been the case because their offensive line has struggled mightily. Not all of the blame for the offense’s poor performances can be put on the offensive line. The play calling and quarterback play have been dreadful as well. The Steelers, seemingly sick of this issue, invested multiple major assets into their offensive line. This began with Broderick Jones last year, and one offensive line specialist believes he could be the key to the Steelers’ offensive line finally improving.
Brandon Thorn is one of the premier voices online speaking about play in the trenches. Whether it’s being involved in the OL Masterminds Summit, having a heavy hand in the Trench Warfare Newsletter, or analyzing offensive and defensive line play for Bleacher Report, Thorn has shown he’s an expert in his field. In a recent appearance on The Athletic Football Show, Thorn spoke about how he believes Jones is the X factor for the Steelers’ offensive line, having the potential to make or break its success.
“I think he was a really good run blocker, did some really nice things in the run game. They pulled him at right tackle and featured his athletic ability and his explosiveness really well, but pass protection was a wild ride, and I think it could be again this year, switching spots back to left after he played that in college,” Thorn said. “That’s a lot of bouncing around. He does have that run-game aspect of his game to hang his hat on, which is nice to build confidence, but I think if he could take a step [forward] in pass protection and be more reliable, I’m just talking solid, reliable level, then the Steelers’ offensive line could be really good this season.”
Thorn’s analysis of Jones’ game is fair, with many of the knocks against him coming out of college being that he would take time to develop as a pass protector. However, the Steelers were aware of that, and obviously believed in his potential and ability to learn enough to not only draft him in the first round, but trade up for him. Just as well, they almost certainly coveted his skill as a run blocker because it fits the identity they want to create for their offense.
Thorn does bring up a valid point when he mentions that Jones has been bouncing around a lot since getting drafted. He played left tackle at Georgia, was forced to play right tackle as a rookie, and now is most likely being flipped back to the left side. Those aren’t easy changes to make, and it could hinder Jones’ development. He seems prepared for anything, but the Steelers haven’t exactly been setting him up for success so far in his young career.
This season will say a lot about what Jones’ future could be with the Steelers. While the team just selected Troy Fautanu in the first round of this year’s draft, most of his experience also comes at left tackle. However, it seems he could slot in at the right side, which would be another example of the Steelers swapping around a lineman’s position. That didn’t work out great with Kevin Dotson or Kendrick Green, but perhaps Fautanu and Jones will be different. The Steelers seem intent on running the football well this year. If both their tackles play up to the standard, then that goal becomes much more attainable.
