Broderick Jones: The Clock Is Ticking
No player on Pittsburgh's offensive line enters training camp facing more questions than Broderick Jones.
The former first-round pick appeared to be finding his footing before a neck injury cut his season short. Now healthy, he returns to an offensive line that suddenly has options. Troy Fautanu is expected to assume a major role, Mason McCormick and Zach Frazier have established themselves as building blocks, Dylan Cook proved he belongs, and first-round rookie Max Iheanachor adds another talented body to the mix. The room has become crowded, and Jones no longer has the luxury of simply relying on draft status.
His stable metrics help explain why the evaluation remains unsettled. Outside of his natural athletic ability, there isn't a category where he consistently separates himself. The flashes are there, but the week-to-week reliability that teams expect from a franchise tackle has yet to emerge.
Jones’ Metrics Breakdown
- 27th percentile - Pass Block Grade w/ No Play Action
- 24th percentile - Pass Block Grade
- 22nd percentile - Pass Block Grade on 5-, 7-Step Concepts
- 19th percentile - Run Block Grade on Zone Runs
- 13th percentile - Pass Block Grade on True Pass Sets
- 12th percentile - Negatively Graded Run Blocks (Higher is better in this metric, so this is a concern.)
- 6th percentile - Run Block Grade on Gap Runs
Jones’ Outlook
Talent has never been the question with Broderick Jones. Consistency has.
Training camp may be the most important stretch of his professional career. If Jones finally puts everything together, the Steelers could still reap the rewards of their first-round investment.
But if the stable metrics continue to mirror his on-field production, Pittsburgh has enough young talent along the offensive line that Jones could find himself fighting for more than a starting job.
If Pittsburgh feels the cupboards are full, he could be fighting for his future with the organization and traded away.
