Steelers' Broderick Jones Receives Big Praise For Performance On Saturday

While the Pittsburgh Steelers are looking for help from several young players in 2025, nobody is more important than offensive tackle Broderick Jones. Jones, the Steelers' 2023 first-round draft pick, has yet to consistently show the ability to be the cornerstone protector that Pittsburgh needs. While some criticism can justifiably be leveled at the Steelers for playing him out of position during his first two seasons, there's plenty of blame to go around. The tackle out of Georgia was responsible for 10 sacks in 2024, as well as 8 penalties. He posted a Pro Football Focus grade of 58.8, good for 89th out of 140 eligible tackles. 

While concerns about Jones have mounted, the preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Saturday was a step in the right direction. On 11 snaps, he registered 0 sacks, pressures, or quarterback hits allowed. 

The sample size is admittedly low. However, it's important to note that the tackle was blocking against the Jaguars' starting defensive ends, Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker, who have quite the pedigree themselves. Walker was the first overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, while Hines-Allen is a two-time Pro Bowler.

Jones wasn't the only lineman who had a great game on Saturday night. Second-year offensive tackle Troy Fautanu, playing opposite Jones, also kept the quarterback upright. The only sack on Mason Rudolph came as a coverage sack, after he held onto the ball for several seconds and couldn't find a receiver. Neither of the linemen were attributed with the sack.

Steelers' Mike Tomlin Impressed With Second-Year Tackle

The Steelers are optimistic about Fautanu, who only saw limited snaps in his rookie season due to a significant injury that kept him sidelined from Week 2 until the end of the year. Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin had some encouraging words to say about him after he repped against TJ Watt in training camp.

"I thought he [Troy Fautanu] represented himself well today [against TJ Watt]," Tomlin said. "As you mentioned, he really gets an opportunity to improve and improve fast because of who he gets to work against every day."

Fautanu was the Steelers' first round selection out of Washington in 2024. There was some concern about his size and whether he could translate to tackle at the NFL level, but Tomlin put those concerns to rest quickly. 

Despite a limited sample size, Fautanu put together a respectable 64.4 PFF Grade in the snaps he did play in 2024, including a 69.3 pass blocking grade. Known as a mobile mauler coming out of college, the team is hoping that he can uphold his reputation of being violent out in space - something that will be key in Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith's zone run scheme. 

Protection from the offensive line has never been more important for the Steelers, with 41-year-old quarterback Aaron Rodgers behind center. Pittsburgh is counting on its young bookends, as well as second-year center Zach Frazier, to make a difference for the team. Last year, they ranked 13th in pass block win rate and 18th in run block win rate - not terrible numbers, but numbers that certainly need to improve without a mobile quarterback. 

There is nobody more crucial to the story of the 2025 Pittsburgh Steelers than Broderick Jones. Concerns about him so far have been justified, but improvement this year would be massive for both his success and the success of the team.

What did you think of the offensive line's performance in the first preseason game? Let us know in the comments below!

#SteelerNation