When the Steelers are coming off their biggest and most important win of the season against the Baltimore Ravens, the last thing Mike Tomlin wants to hear about is how poorly his former first-round pick played. Pittsburgh just got done putting up their dukes in a slugfest team victory and nitpicking an individual's performance seemed ill-timed.
However, this is exactly what happened after the game.
In the midst of being asked about impressive individual performances from defenders like Patrick Queen and Payton Wilson, the topic of Broderick Jones was also brought up... but not for positive reasons.
Against the Ravens, Jones was tagged with a hatrick of penalties -- a pair of holding calls and a personal foul (though the latter was offsetting). Fresh off an upset win over the Baltimore Ravens, Tomlin took out his frustration with this question on the media.
"I am not worried about that. You guys can write all you want," Tomlin said during his post-game press conference. "Broderick Jones is playing right tackle for us. He's going to continue to get better. He's a top-quality player in terms of his talent. He's a young guy. He's experiencing some on-the-job training. He and I will not blink. Keep writing."
Ironically, Broderick was coming off a career performance in Week 10 in Pittsburgh's win over the Washington Commanders in which he didn't allow a single pressure on 32 pass-block reps while earning an outstanding 82.7 pass-block grade, per Pro Football Focus.
Steelers need to exercise patience with Broderick Jones
Broderick Jones has been at the center of conversation among Steelers fans and the media alike this year. The 14th overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft hasn't lived up to lofty expectations despite his flashes.
Having said that, there's a time and a place for everything. Asking Mike Tomlin about a struggling football player after defeating one of the best teams in the league seemed like a poor choice.
We all can see where Broderick has fallen short in his first season-and-a-half, but Steelers fans must exercise patience. This is the same fanbase that just witnessed three bad years of Dan Moore Jr. at left tackle before he finally developed as a quality starting OT in the NFL in year four at 26 years old.
Jones is more talented than Moore and he's only 23. We know offensive tackles can take a while to develop. We also know that Broderick was an extremely raw player when the Steelers traded up for him in the first round of the 2023 draft.
This isn't to say that the athletically-gifted offensive tackle is guaranteed to turn things around, but we at least need to give him the benefit of the doubt that he can improve.
At the very least, how about we highlight some remarkable performances and miraculous plays immediately after the game instead of beating a dead horse with the relentless questions about Broderick Jones' struggles?