NFL Preseason, Broderick Jones, Aaron Rodgers, Troy Fautanu
NFL Preseason, Broderick Jones, Aaron Rodgers, Troy Fautanu
The Pittsburgh Steelers have built one of the most fascinating rosters in the AFC. However, one cutdown-day decision threatens to undermine everything. Pittsburgh's initial 53-man roster is loaded with star power, from Aaron Rodgers and DK Metcalf to TJ Watt, Jalen Ramsey, and Patrick Queen. Yet the Steelers simultaneously chose to remove a proven piece from the most important protection unit on the team. Trading offensive tackle Broderick Jones to the Dallas Cowboys for future draft capital may eventually prove defensible from a long-term asset-management perspective. In the context of the 2026 season, though, it is a needless gamble.
Immediate contention
Steelers' DK Metcalf reflects on Aaron Rodgers full circle moment with his father
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Pittsburgh's roster features an intoxicating blend of elite top-end talent and curious positional allocations. The offense is headlined by Rodgers and a dynamic pass-catching corps featuring DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. They stand alongside the explosive emergence of Roman Wilson and Germie Bernard. In an unconventional strategic twist, head coach Mike McCarthy and the front office chose to carry four quarterbacks on the active roster. They retained Mason Rudolph alongside developmental passers Will Howard and Drew Allar.
Defensively, the unit remains anchored by front-seven disruptors Cameron Heyward, Keeanu Benton, Watt, Alex Highsmith and Queen. Ramsey, Joey Porter Jr, and Jaquan Brisker will patrol the secondary. However, the path to assembling this 53-man group was defined by sudden departures. Those included the trade of running back Kaleb Johnson to Green Bay and the seismic move involving Jones. The final roster carries 26 offensive players, 24 defenders, and three specialists. Of course, those four quarterbacks consume valuable offensive real estate.
Stripping essential protection
The single biggest mistake Pittsburgh committed on cutdown day was trading Jones to Dallas. Jones started 38 of the 45 games he played during his first three seasons. He had experience on both sides of the offensive line. Last season, he played all 603 of his offensive snaps at left tackle after spending his first two years primarily on the right side. His versatility was one of the Steelers' most valuable forms of insurance.
Yes, Pittsburgh received meaningful draft compensation. The Cowboys sent a 2027 third-round pick and sixth-round pick while receiving Jones and a fourth-rounder. From a pure asset-management perspective, that is hardly a giveaway. Still, football teams do not win games with future draft selections sitting in a war room. They win with capable players standing between their quarterback and the opposing pass rush.
The Steelers are not entering 2026 with a young quarterback who can absorb punishment while learning the professional game. They are trying to maximize what could be Rodgers' final season. Every possession, every third down and every red-zone opportunity carries heightened importance. That makes offensive-line stability more valuable than it would be for a rebuilding organization. Jones' greatest value was the ability to provide credible protection. Now that insurance is gone.
Little room for error
Pittsburgh still has Troy Fautanu, Max Iheanachor, and Dylan Cook. Its interior line also includes players such as Zach Frazier, Spencer Anderson, Mason McCormick, Brock Hoffman and Ryan McCollum. The Steelers also moved Jack Driscoll to injured reserve with a designation to return. On paper, that is enough bodies. The concern is what happens when the bodies start disappearing.
Fautanu is positioned to play a major role. Iheanachor provides another option. However, asking young or inexperienced tackles to suddenly absorb a starting workload is a completely different proposition. That is why Jones' departure feels so costly.
The Rodgers equation
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Rodgers remains the centerpiece of Pittsburgh's win-now strategy. The organization has already demonstrated how aggressively it is willing to construct around him.
Pittsburgh deliberately kept Rodgers, Rudolph, Howard and Allar. That rather unusual allocation consumes an additional spot but protects developmental quarterback assets. McCarthy has embraced that philosophy. Now, that makes the Jones trade even more curious.
If the Steelers are willing to sacrifice a roster spot for quarterback insurance, why remove a versatile Jones? The answer, presumably, is that Pittsburgh believes its current tackle configuration is sufficient.
That is the bet. And it is one that could become extremely expensive.
Learning the hard way
Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones (77) looks for someone to block as tight end Robert Tonyan (83) carries the ball during the first half of a game against the Green Bay Packers at Acrisure Stadium.
Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images
There is nothing inherently wrong with trading Jones. The Steelers identified an offensive lineman whose place on the depth chart had become uncertain. Dallas clearly valued his experience enough to surrender multiple future selections. Jones also missed the final six games of the 2025 regular season after suffering a neck injury. That adds another layer to Pittsburgh's evaluation.
Still roster decisions should always be judged against context. Pittsburgh is a team constructed to compete now. Rodgers is 42. Watt remains one of football's premier defensive forces. The secondary has been aggressively reinforced. Metcalf and Pittman give the offense legitimate perimeter firepower. The Steelers are not stockpiling talent for three years from now.
They are trying to win immediately. That makes offensive tackle depth a luxury they should have protected rather than converted into future draft capital.