Plenty of Pittsburgh Steelers fans will be tuning in to Friday’s preseason game to see quarterbacks Will Howard and Drew Allar. After playing well in their preseason debut, it’s intriguing to think about what each signal-caller could do for an encore.
However, there’s plenty of other players to keep an eye on for the Steelers in Week 2 of the preseason. Steelers Depot’s Josh Carney named former first-round offensive tackle Broderick Jones one of them.
That’s not because Jones is fighting for a roster spot. Instead, Carney argued Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy should give the former first-rounder an opportunity to earn repetitions at right tackle.
“After playing a team-high 49 snaps in the preseason opener against the Packers and looking pretty solid overall, Broderick Jones has an opportunity to continue stacking strong days. He’s putting on some weight after his neck surgery, and he appears fully back into game shape at this point,” wrote Carney.
“He projects as a nice swing tackle for the Steelers, but with rookie first-round pick Max Iheanachor’s injury and Dylan Cook’s uninspiring play against Green Bay, I’d like to see Jones get some run at right tackle against the Jets. While he hasn’t played right tackle in a game since the 2024 season, he has nearly 1,700 career snaps at the position and got some work at right tackle during training camp.
“McCarthy and his staff have talked time and time again about having versatility up and down the roster. The Steelers have that along the offensive line, too, especially with Jones. Let him show it Friday night.”
Doing that would make a lot of sense. But it would completely change the plan the Steelers have deployed with Jones in 2026.
Could Steelers Still Start Broderick Jones at Right Tackle?
GettyPittsburgh Steelers former first-round pick Broderick Jones faces a potential critical Week 2 in the NFL preseason.
Carney proposed a really interesting scenario.
Jones played well in the preseason opener. If he performs well again, it would only be natural for the Steelers to try and find him a spot in the starting lineup.
The team is replacing Jones at left tackle with last year’s starting right tackle Troy Fautanu. Jones is much more natural on the left side, so until Carney, pundits have pretty much ruled out Jones flipping back to right tackle.
The Steelers also had Dylan Cook and Max Iheanachor competing at right tackle during training camp.
But Iheanachor is an injured rookie, and Cook is a former undrafted free agent. Cook played well in a small sample last December but perhaps he’s coming back down to earth this month.
Is that the opening Jones needs to get back in the starting lineup at right tackle?
It’s something worth considering. If the Steelers are to consider it, then it would be best to get Jones repetitions at right tackle in the preseason.
Even if Jones doesn’t start at right tackle, him playing there Friday could be useful. As Carney explained, versatility is key, particularly in backup linemen.
Jones could begin the regular season as Pittsburgh’s swing tackle.
Did Mike McCarthy Already Rule out Jones Playing Right Tackle?
GettyBroderick Jones could continue earning a crucial role with the Pittsburgh Steelers during Week 2 of the NFL preseason.
Interestingly, McCarthy may have indirectly already addressed potentially playing Jones more at right tackle. When the subject about the Steelers deploying different offensive line combinations at practice came up, the head coach didn’t exactly sound wild about the idea.
“You ideally like to bring a player in and have him learn the left guard, left tackle, and right guard to right tackle because then his footwork will transfer easier,” McCarthy told reporters on August 17. “It’s tough to see with Broderick [Jones], for a guy to go from left tackle and turn around and play right tackle two days later.”
That statement goes against McCarthy’s call for his first Steelers roster having versatility. But it could be a reason why Jones doesn’t play any right tackle Friday night.
The Steelers will host the New York Jets at 7 pm ET at Acrisure Stadium.
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