The Pittsburgh Steelers managed to win another close game as they defeated the Baltimore Ravens by a score of 18-16. Despite setting up Chris Boswell for six field goals, the offense sputtered repeatedly due to multiple factors. Sometimes it was the play-calling, or Russell Wilson making a mistake. Offensive tackle Broderick Jones also had a pair of penalties on the same drive, but the offense was at least able to overcome them and get into the red zone. He also had an offsetting unsportsmanlike penalty in one of the many scuffles that the two rivals had during the game.
During his postgame press conference, Head Coach Mike Tomlin confidently told the media that Jones would be the starting right tackle moving forward. On Monday for his weekly press conference, he explained why he had so much confidence in the young tackle's ability to grow into the player that he believes he can be.
"[Broderick Jones] is a young guy. He's younger than all the rookies in his position, to put it in perspective. Zach Frazier and [Mason] McCormick are older than him, and so he's got growth in all areas ahead of him, but he also has an awesome skill set. We're experiencing some bumps and bruises associated with on-the-job training. Like I mentioned yesterday, I have no intention of blinking, and neither does he, and we'll just keep working."
Jones was drafted as a 21-year-old project with a very high ceiling and some versatility just in case it was needed. He has only one career start on the blind side, and was not considered to be the full-time guy until Chukwuma Okorafor supposedly made some comments that Tomlin deemed inappropriate, leading to his benching.
One season later, Steeler Nation has been questioning if Jones has been regressing, as opposed to progressing. He even got benched in Week 2 in favor of the 2024 first-round rookie, Troy Fautanu. However, a season-ending injury put Jones right back in the starting slot, and he has kept that job ever since.
Steelers Will Continue To Give Jones Chances After 2024
Dan Moore Jr., who has been hogging the left tackle spot for the last couple of years, is slated to be a free agent at season's end. As long as the Steelers do not re-sign him, the only thing that can stop Jones from being the full-time starter at his natural position on the left side is himself.
General Manager Omar Khan has previously stated that Jones is a left tackle, and it's a matter of when the team allows him to make the switch, as opposed to if it happens. If everything goes according to plan, Jones will take the blindside spot, and Fautanu will be the starting on the opposite side for 2025.
The Steelers have already begun to get Jones reps in that spot. When they bring in Spencer Anderson to be the extra lineman, they sometimes slot him in at right tackle and move Jones to the left side, outside of Moore. While it's not the greatest way to learn how to protect the quarterback's blind side, it at least helps him get more familiar with that end of the line.
Jones is also a former first-round pick, and the Steelers don't like to give up on them quickly. The only one that they had an itchy trigger finger on was Kenny Pickett, and that was because he allegedly ran himself out of town with temper tantrums. As long as Jones does not complain about his current situation and works to be better, the Steelers will happily give him chance after chance to develop into the blindside blocker of the future.
