When Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan selected offensive tackle Broderick Jones with his first-ever draft pick, it felt like the beginning of a new era for the team. The offensive line had fallen apart in recent years, and Khan seemed determined to fix it. Just over three years later, Pittsburgh has built a young and talented group upfront, but Jones is unfortunately no longer part of it.
The Steelers and Cowboys agreed on a deal Saturday to send Jones and a fourth-round pick to Dallas in exchange for a third-round pick and a sixth-round pick. The deal comes after Jones struggled this preseason in his return from a neck injury he suffered last season, further cementing his status as a failed experiment in Pittsburgh.
While Jones played plenty of snaps for the Steelers over his three seasons with the team, he never developed into the player they hoped he would be coming out of Georgia. Now, he gets a fresh start while the Steelers look for more help along the offensive line.
Pittsburgh Steelers call it quits on the Broderick Jones era
In my final 53-man roster prediction, I had Jones missing the roster for a reason. Whether it was an outright cut (or a trade, as we saw come to fruition), it just felt like the right time to move on from what was a clear miss by the front office. The young OL had plenty of talent and potential, but he never seemed to develop in any of his three seasons.
Part of that can certainly be blamed on the Steelers coaching staff, as they moved him from his natural left tackle spot to the right side during his rookie year. He was then asked to go back to LT when they drafted Troy Fautanu in the first round in 2024, before again moving him back to RT once Fautanu went down for the year during his rookie season.
All this flip-flopping and general confusion surrounding his role couldn't have made things easy for him, especially for a player who started just 19 games in college. Still, he failed to ever clean up his technique or add needed mass to his frame, and it made for some ugly moments in nearly every start he made for the Steelers.
Perhaps a change of scenery in Dallas is what he needs to get his career back on track, but he has a long way to go before he can be considered a legitimate starter again. For Pittsburgh, adding draft capital for a pivotal draft next season is a big win, even if it's swapping mid-round picks and picking up another late-rounder.
Expect to see them look to add a veteran tackle to replace Jones on the bench, whether it's before the cutdown deadline on Sunday or shortly after.
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