Will Dylan Cook be the Steelers’ opening-day starting tackle over Max Iheanachor (and Broderick Jones)?
While Dylan Cook ran with the first-team offense during the spring, does he have the edge to start the season? He is in at least a two-way competition for the Steelers’ right tackle job—if not a three-way competition. At the very least, rookie first-round pick Max Iheanachor is in the mix. Whether Broderick Jones can throw his hat into the ring as well, time will tell.
Jones has been a starter for the past three seasons, but a neck injury suffered last year has put his career on hold. While he is working out with the team, he has not been cleared for contact. It’s unclear what his timeline is and whether it would allow him to compete with Cook and Iheanachor for a starting spot. Among the obstacles involved, his inability to lift extensively has caused him to lose weight and muscle mass. He’s not even in shape to play right tackle in the NFL at the moment, or at least wasn’t in OTAs.
A former college free agent, Dylan Cook toiled away for years, mostly on practice squads, but also at times as a ninth lineman, before finally seeing his opportunity a year ago. After Broderick Jones’ injury, he ended up fourth in line. Also injured were Calvin Anderson and then Andrus Peat, who suffered a concussion replacing Jones.
Neither Anderson nor Peat is back, largely because Dylan Cook proved to the Steelers that he was a better option. But is he their best option, at least by the start of September, to start at right tackle? Obviously, they drafted Iheanachor to be a starter, and hopefully sooner rather than later. Broderick Jones is, of course, supposed to be a starter, too, but you can’t start three tackles. Until he’s healthy and in football shape, however, he stands outside the equation.
With several weeks between now and training camp, Jones could enter the picture at some point. Of course, with no knowledge of his medical situation, it’s a complete mystery to those on the outside. If it’s Dylan Cook versus how fast Max Iheanachor can get up to speed, who will win out? It would be going too far to call Cook an incumbent, considering where he came from.
The Steelers have a long road ahead of them under Mike McCarthy, along with his cadre of quarterbacks.With seven consecutive postseason losses and no wins in nearly a decade, they are under fire for their repeated playoff failures. While we have seen many changes, none could dream of topping Mike Tomlin’s resignation.
We’re already deep into the offseason, with free agency and the draft already reshaping rosters. The Steelers, of course, are used to early offseason mode as a team thatloses by the middle of January all the time. Enjoy the ride, even the turbulence, because it’s the only way we know how to travel anymore.
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