The Pittsburgh Steelers have targeted the offensive line heavily, especially early, in recent drafts. At the start of that effort, they moved up a couple of spots to take a tackle in Broderick Jones back in 2023.
Jones has shown flashes at times, but things haven’t been consistent enough through the first three years of his career. Things are now complicated more by a neck injury Jones suffered late in the 2025 season. For those reasons, it’s not likely the Steelers will pick up Jones’ fifth-year option.
To Charlie Batch, that’s a decision that makes sense. But it’s not as if the Steelers made a mistake drafting Jones, with Batch thinking injuries forced them into this route.
“I don’t think they’re admitting making a mistake, injuries dictated this particular decision. Because if the injury didn’t happen, I think his fifth-year option gets picked up… I don’t necessarily think that happens at the beginning of May. And only because of the injury. So if that is the case, now there is a possibility of him walking out next year, or that dollar amount could continue to increase if he has a big year,” Batch said this week on his Snap Count podcast. “Injuries have caused his particular decision, not because the Steelers have made the wrong choice at the first round.”
Injuries haven’t really been a concern for Jones until 2025. He played in 17 games and started 11 in his rookie year in 2023. The following year, Jones played in every game again, but started 16. He had started every game in 2025, until he suffered the neck injury against Chicago in Week 12.
An injury which Broderick Jones seems to be recovering well from. He was in attendance at workouts recently and was seen running in a video posted by the Steelers’ X account.
Neck injuries are obviously hard to return from, so it’s good to see Jones moving around as early as April. The timing of his injury hurts, as he was putting a solid stretch of play together over the middle part of the season. But he seems to be making progress as he recovers.
That’s important, as 2026 is a massive season for Jones. The Steelers likely won’t pick up his option, so Jones is essentially heading into a contract year. With a strong season, he can earn a big paycheck from the Steelers, or another team that values him.
Hopefully Broderick Jones can be ready to go when the Steelers ramp things up this summer. Dylan Cook played well in relief of Jones last year and could fight for a starting spot if Jones is slow to get back. And plenty think tackle would make sense in the first round of the draft as well. Yet, if Jones can get healthy and continue to build consistency in 2026, he could still secure his own future in Pittsburgh.
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