August 17 was another standout night for the Pittsburgh Steelers offense. In Week 2 of the preseason against the Buffalo Bills, the Steelers managed just 219 yards in a 9-3 loss. They managed fewer than 10 total yards on six of their 10 offenses.
The quarterback play of Russell Wilson and Justin Fields will draw a lot of criticism for the poor offensive performance. But the signal callers didn’t get much help from other players like right tackle Broderick Jones.
Jones, the team’s 2023 first-round pick, was unable to block Bills defensive end Greg Rousseau for most of the night. Steelers media and fans criticized Jones on social media for his performance.
“Broderick Jones is being bullied here,” the Blitzburgh X-Account (formerly Twitter) wrote.
Blitzburgh wrote this as a caption to a play in which Rousseau pushed Jones out of the way before dismissing Fields.
Other X-users also highlighted this low point in the game for Jones.
“EZ look of the first sack Broderick Jones allowed on Greg Rousseau, who simply grabs the right wrist and has the right hand inside,” wrote Steelers Depot.
“Are we sure Broderick Jones is an NFL tackle? Greg Rousseau is bullying him,” wrote Josh Yourish.
“Either Gregory Rosseau is a first-team All-Pro or Broderick Jones is a worst-team All-Pro,” wrote Nick Ercolano.
Broderick Jones struggles as he continues to play as right tackle
Jones has mostly played right tackle for the Steelers, but in college he played left tackle for the national champion Georgia Bulldogs.
When some Jones followers on X saw the 2023 first-round pick unable to slow down Rousseau on August 17, they reminded their followers that he is not a natural right tackle.
The loudest of these supporters was Pittsburgh sports star Mark Madden.
“Broderick Jones should be LT, period. Stop messing around,” he wrote. “This is coaching misconduct.”
The tweet received more than 350 likes within three hours as many Steelers fans agreed with Madden.
“You would think that the success of other linemen on other teams who have failed here after position changes would be a clue to someone in the organization that moving every player might not be a good idea,” wrote Remo Lalli.
Jones has played both left and right tackle in practice this summer.
The Steelers media blamed not only Jones’ role as right tackle, but also his elbow brace as the reason for his poor performance against the Bills.
“He told me the brace he wears on his right elbow is really limiting his options out there, and well… that’s what it looks like,” wrote Alan Saunders of Steelers Now.
Jones started 11 games as right tackle in 2023
The fact that Jones played in an unfamiliar position due to a possible elbow injury could have been a reason for the 23-year-old’s performance on August 17. However, it was not his debut as a right tackle.
He played almost all of his games in the NFL as a right tackle. In the 2023 season, he started 12 games at that position, including the playoffs.
“Everyone says it’s because he’s not at his position,” wrote Tone Digs. “He played well as a RT last season. This is different.”
“I’m not going to use ‘not in the right position’ as a reason for poor play,” wrote Josh Carney of Steeler Depot. “Broderick Jones played nearly 700 snaps as a RT last season. This is not a new position for him.”
Ultimately, both problems can exist. The Steelers did Jones’ development a disservice by making him a right tackle, but based on his performance, he hasn’t earned the starting left tackle spot.
“You can’t tell everyone that Broderick Jones is the long-term solution at LT and just not let him play there,” wrote the account Steelers Network X. “He’s not helping himself either, but if you want him to play in a certain spot, just leave him there.”
David Holcomb is a sports reporter covering the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions. Holcomb is originally from Pittsburgh and has covered college and professional sports for media outlets such as FanSided, Rotowire and Yardbarker. More about Dave Holcomb