Broderick Jones was potentially the most pivotal player on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense coming into the 2025 season. Protecting Aaron Rodgers’ blindside, Jones would have to be at his best to keep the 41-year-old quarterback upright. That’s not easy, considering the talented edge rushers Jones is tasked with stopping throughout the year.
This week against the Cleveland Browns, Jones has arguably his toughest test in Myles Garrett. That’s a challenge Mike Tomlin thinks his young tackle is ready for.
“I don’t know that it requires conversation. I think that Broderick is not a dummy,” Tomlin said at his Tuesday press conference via the team’s YouTube channel. “He realizes who he’s competing against this week. And he’s a competitor and a professional. And so I haven’t spent any time thinking about how I’m going to talk to or motivate Broderick this week.”
The beginning of the year was brutal for Jones. Some bad signs emerged in training camp, with Steelers’ defenders racing around him throughout camp. Then, he had a tough three-sack performance to begin the season against the New York Jets. It didn’t seem like the Steelers were ever going to get what they needed from their 2023 first-round pick at the time.
Then, Broderick Jones and the rest of the line started to turn it on against the Minnesota Vikings in Dublin. It took some time, but that was the first instance in which Pittsburgh was truly able to control the line of scrimmage. The Steelers dominated the Vikings’ offensive line, pushing the pile back against the run and giving Aaron Rodgers some clean pockets to work with.
While the Browns haven’t had a ton of success to begin the year, their defense is talented. It’s been one of the best units in the league, which of course starts with the efforts of Garrett. Through five games, Garrett has four sacks, along with 13 total pressures. Coming off back-to-back First-Team All Pro nominations, he hasn’t skipped much of a beat to start the year.
All in all, this is a game the Steelers should win. Their offense is finally clicking and they’re coming off a bye week, while Cleveland heads back from their game in London. However, the Browns’ defense is very stout. And for the Steelers to have success offensively, Broderick Jones needs to do as much as he can to slow Garrett down.
