It was a rather concerning sight last Saturday inside Acrisure Stadium. Second-year Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive tackle Broderick Jones getting pushed around with ease by member of the Buffalo Bills, leading to two sacks allowed, multiple pressures given up, and a disastrous showing all around.
For many, the struggled could be blamed on the elbow injury that Jones is clearly playing through, due to the brace on his right arm. Jones suffered the injury on the first day of padded practices at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe. Though he hasn’t missed a practice and has played in both preseason games, the elbow is clearly hindering him.
Jones wouldn’t make excuses for the brace or the injury during his session with the media. Head coach Mike Tomlin won’t be making excuses, either.
“We’re not looking for excuses,” Tomlin said to reporters Tuesday when asked if the brace was giving Jones some trouble, according to the transcript provided by the team.
Nor should they be. This is a results-oriented business. Right now, the results are not good for Broderick Jones, regardless of circumstances. He’s out there and available to the Steelers, so he has to be better.
When the team reconvened on Monday, it was undoubtedly a tough film session for the second-year tackle. He really struggled to do much of anything right, both as a pass blocker and a run blocker. His technique was poor, his pad level was too high, and his punch was lacking power.
He wasn’t even using independent hands in pass protection, which is what offensive line coach Pat Meyer wants.
For Tomlin, how Broderick Jones responds in his next opportunity on the field will be very telling. Presumably, that will come on Saturday on the road in Detroit against the Lions at 1 p.m.
“I think the next performance is an indication of that,” Tomlin said of Jones’s response, according to the transcript. “It’s a process, in terms of getting better. You play, you evaluate, and you analyze, you acknowledge, and you make another plan to get ready for the next opportunity.
“But, ultimately, responses are gauged by the next performance.”
Jones and the Steelers can say and do all the right things in the lead-up to the game regarding his struggles, how he will correct it, and more. But none of that matters in the end. It’s about what he shows on the field.
Right now, there are no excuses for it. The Steelers and Tomlin aren’t seeking comfort in any excuse or reasoning for the struggles. They’re focusing their efforts on fixing it. We’ll see if Jones can show signs of that improvement against the Lions on Saturday.
