Pittsburgh Steelers OT Broderick Jones generates discourse when grading 2023 first-round picks
Rookie life in the NFL is hard enough. When you're suddenly thrust into the lineup and at an unnatural position, that difficulty only rises. That was the context of Broderick Jones' rookie season with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and two draft analysts are on the other side of the spectrum in terms of how he performed […]
Rookie life in the NFL is hard enough.
When you're suddenly thrust into the lineup and at an unnatural position, that difficulty only rises.
That was the context of Broderick Jones' rookie season with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and two draft analysts are on the other side of the spectrum in terms of how he performed within said situation:
James Foster's Grade for Broderick Jones: C
The Good
"I went with a C for Broderick Jones," said James Foster of A to Z Sports Film Room. "I could see the argument for a C plus, but I think that he was probably the most inconsistent of the first-round offensive linemen, and I mean that in a good and a bad way. I think his highs were really impressive. There's two to three reps on his tape of him doing whatever it is [at a high level], whether it's like an outside hand strike, playing with independent hands, making a backside cut-off's in the run game, down blocking, getting a lot of displacement, pancaking a linebacker, or dropping his anchor. There are two or three reps where it looks exactly like you want it to look. And I think if you just took his highlights, I would say they're even more impressive than the highs from Parris Johnson Jr. [first tackle selected in last year's draft] this year."
The Bad
"The problem that I have with Broderick Jones, just purely looking at his rookie season, is that I thought the lows were as low or I think lower than anyone else," added Foster. "I mean, he had some true disastrous games where I felt like he was a real liability for the Steelers' offense, especially down the stretch. The Bills game in the playoffs… He kind of unlocked Von Miller for the first time in in quite a while. You know, [Ravens pass rusher Jadeveon] Clowney was beating him with a cross chop [pass rush move] a few times. But then there are also some games, like I said, where it looks perfect. I mean, I thought the Seahawks game was one of the best individual performances from any of these rookie tackles in both phases [run & pass] for Broderick Jones. So he's a player where I'm really excited about the upside. I think he has the chance to be as good as anyone in this class. But just grading the rookie season, I do have to go with this C because I think at certain points, he was the main weakness of their offense in specific games."
Destin Adams' Grade for Broderick Jones: A-
The Rationale
"Yeah, so like I said earlier, I think this was the biggest variance we had," said Destin Adams of A to Z Sports Indianapolis, and NFL Draft. "I had an A- for Broderick Jones. I think the Pittsburgh Steelers had a such a weird philosophy with their rookies last year. Both Broderick Jones and Joey Porter Jr. were clear as day ready to start on that roster. Those [positions] were weaknesses on the Steelers team. There weren't corners that should have kept Joey Porter out of the starting rotation early in last season. There weren't tackles on the Steelers roster last year that should have kept Broderick Jones sitting for that first portion of the year. And tackles more so than maybe any offensive lineman, the learning curve is steep and the rookie struggles affect just about everyone. I think if you start Broderick Jones week one, you get through a lot of these bumps and curves that you have to go through. And I think we would have seen a lot more of the flashes that we saw last year into the end of the year. So I went with an A-. I think the Steelers would do this pick again and I think Broderick Jones would probably go in a similar range in a redraft as well. I think the talent is there and I think Broderick Jones is going to have a big second year. I like the upside with Broderick Jones."
My Grade for Broderick Jones: B+
I fall somewhere in the middle in terms of my grade for Jones, as he was well above average for a rookie, but had his share of struggles.
To Adams' point about Jones not playing early, that is simply what the Steelers do with their rookies. Honestly, if former staring RT Chuks Okorafor isn't benched for his comments about Matt Canada, there's a world where Jones doesn't touch the field during his rookie season, seeing as it took an obscene scenario in Week 9 for him to start.
So it's hard to argue that an unexpected midseason insertion didn't hamper Jones' development. As Adams stated, reps are crucial for tackles, especially naturally-born left tackles who are asked to play on the right side.
And within that nuance, Jones performed well above expectation in my opinion. He was a mauler in the run game by the end of the year, with strong side runs shaded toward his alignment.
But as Foster displayed in his analysis, Jones was a liability in pass protection in a plethora of games. His technique and "rawness" as a protector were his main weaknesses coming out of Georgia, and those were only exacerbated in the aforementioned situation.
But if Pittsburgh could do it all over again, they certainly would select Jones. Following the selection of OT Troy Fautanu in the first round of this year's draft, Pittsburgh can now seamlessly kick Jones back to his natural spot on the left, something Khan and Co. have emphasized this offseason.
With a high ceiling and better situation headed into year two, expect a big sophomore season from Jones.
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