Broderick Jones avoided Active/PUP. He’s fully participated every step of the way in training camp. Presumably, he’ll suit up when the Pittsburgh Steelers play their preseason opener next week against the Green Bay Packers. That’s great news for him personally and professionally.
Jones might be healthy, but he still seems a long shot to get back into the starting race.
There haven’t been many signs Jones is truly competing with Dylan Cook and Max Iheanachor for the starting right tackle job. He’s yet to work first-team, with most of those reps going to Cook. Iheanachor has occasionally rotated in and has generated plenty of buzz since the pads have come on. It still seems all but certain Pittsburgh’s Week One starter will be one of those two men, with Iheanachor gaining ground on Cook.
Even ready for camp, Jones has seemingly fallen too far behind. Limitations in the spring hampered his chance to make a positive impression on coaches. His weight was down, and so was his strength; he was limited in the weight room until he was fully cleared. It shows. Jones sports a skinnier lower half, and a lack of strength has flashed during team periods. Veteran Dean Lowry, a bubble player, has handled him during team periods to knock him into the backfield and disrupt the run game.
Jones intentionally dropped weight last year to build it back up during the season. He can follow that roadmap this year. But it hasn’t transpired in the same way, and Jones has more competition now than ever before.
That doesn’t mean Jones is without value. Pittsburgh appears to view him as a viable swing tackle candidate. Since being drafted, he’s logged more than 1,800 snaps at right tackle and nearly 700 on the left. That’s game-day experience at both tackle spots most linemen don’t possess. Dylan Cook has left- and right-side flexibility but doesn’t have the in-stadium reps Jones does. It’s not even close.
Tuesday morning, Mike McCarthy highlighted his past experiences of playing o-line roulette.
“My experience in Dallas, we had a lot of injuries to the offensive line…we try to work different combinations of guards and tackles,” McCarthy said via the team’s YouTube channel. “It’s more who they play next to. The footwork because it’s different when a player has to play left side and then move to the right side.
“If a guy has guard/tackle flex, going back to the player acquisition process and the draft, that’s why you look at tackles. You want to draft tackles and have the ability to move them inside. You like to be able to train these guys left side, right side. Left guard and left tackle to keep the footwork cohesive.”
McCarthy has preached flexibility all camp. Jones brings that. Pittsburgh could hold onto him as a backup lineman ready to take the field when injuries strike. He’ll have more time to regain his strength, too.
There’s still plenty of unknown with Jones’ future. He could be a top backup, a deeper reserve, and a trade isn’t off the table. The one thing that seems unlikely, barring multiple injuries, is starting out of the gate. It’s hardly a worst-case scenario