Things did not go well in the tackle rotation Sunday in Denver for Pittsburgh Steelers’ second-year offensive tackle Broderick Jones.
The Georgia product, who lost his starting right tackle job to rookie Troy Fautanu against the Broncos, played just 11 snaps and was then benched for the rest of the game after being called for three penalties in a six-snap sequence, hindering what looked to be a very positive Steelers drive.
After the game, Jones made an interesting comment to the media, stating he believes he shouldn’t be playing if he’s not starting. While he might have a point, it’s not a great comment to make, especially after a three-penalty performance in which he said some defenders were flopping.
So now, after the benching, it appears it’ll be an uphill battle for Jones to get back into the lineup anytime soon.
For Pat McAfee Show Correspondent Mark Kaboly, who appeared on the 93.7 The Fan Morning Show Monday, it’s trending that Jones might not see the field at all the rest of the season unless it’s due to injury, as Kaboly believes the Steelers are “waiting for Dan Moore to stink it up” to potentially give Jones another opportunity.
“It’s trending that way, right? I mean, I think they’re gonna find any way possible to get him in…So you’re looking at Dan Moore. If Dan Moore even gives you a hiccup or two, they’re gonna probably try to find a way to put him [Jones] in there. I just hope it’s not in a rotating basis, ’cause that’s not good for anybody,” Kaboly said of Jones, according to audio via 93.7 The Fan. “That’s not good for the quarterback, that’s not good for the cohesion of the line. That’s not good for the development of the guys. So I don’t know where you’re putting that.
“Now, if you come back and talk to me in three months and say Broderick Jones isn’t on the field one time since that Denver game, then I think there’s a huge problem. I think he needs to be out there. The question is, where do you find to put him out there, where he is not gonna hurt the team?”
It’s disappointing that the situation with Jones has reached this point, especially after a strong rookie season in which he was an identity-changing piece along the offensive line, stepping into the lineup in Week 9 last season and giving the Steelers a major boost in the run game.
That hasn’t been the case this season, though. Jones got off to a tough start with an elbow injury in training camp, and then had a rough preseason, leading to plenty of criticism with many questioning him and his health and abilities.
Those issues carried over into the season and saw him get passed by Fautanu this past week, and then saw Jones have three killer penalties on the same drive, leading to his benching.
Now, his role is unclear. Will the Steelers do a rotation again? That seems unlikely. So how does Jones get back into the lineup and get the reps he needs?
All eyes will be on Moore at left tackle.
“I think they’re just trying to make everybody happy. First of all, you got two first-round picks and you feel obligated to get those two guys in there. But you know darn well the guy that they should be replacing is probably the playing the best out of ’em all. So what do you do here? You try to make everything work here and you can’t. You just can’t do it that way,” Kaboly added regarding the tackle situation. “You have to pick two guys and just move forward with them until one guy shows he doesn’t belong there. And I think that’s what they’ll do moving forward here. I think they’re just gonna wait for an injury, wait for somebody to really stink it up…They’re waiting for Dan Moore to stink it up so they can put him [Jones] in there. I mean, they can’t continue to do this.
“They’re just trying to make everybody happy and they’re trying to…drink outta the straw from both ends, right? It’s just not gonna work.”
If Sunday’s performance against the Broncos was any indication, the rotation isn’t going to work, whether that’s Jones and Fautanu, or potentially Jones and Moore.
Moore, to his credit, had a good training camp, played well in the preseason and is off to a strong start through two weeks in the regular season, even with a killer holding penalty in the second half Sunday.
So, Jones finds himself behind the 8-ball a bit, dealing with poor play himself and waiting for another opportunity due to injury or poor play in front of him. It’s a tough spot for a young tackle who the Steelers traded up to land in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Development isn’t linear, though, and Jones is dealing with real adversity for the first time in his football career. It’ll be interesting to see how he responds to it.
