The Pittsburgh Steelers got the Week 2 victory over the Denver Broncos with a score of 13-6. It was an ugly outing, but Mike Tomlin’s team took care of business. They are now 2-0 and atop the AFC North, but have some obvious flaws that need to be fixed fast. Penalties were a major issue on both sides of the ball during the win on Sunday, and the offense would have put up more points if it weren’t for penalties killing drives.
Broderick Jones played minimally in the victory, but was a repeat offender when it came to committing penalties. Rookie Troy Fautanu took Jones’ starting spot at right tackle, but Jones took his place on Pittsburgh’s third possession.
On that one possession, Jones committed three penalties. These included a false start and two holding infractions. Tomlin pulled him off the field mid-drive and Fautanu resumed his duties at right tackle. Jones was asked about these penalties after the game, and took no accountability whatsoever.
“Defenders flop, refs throw flags, that’s the end of that. Really not much you can do about it, just next play mentality. Keep going.”
Jones committed these three penalties in a span of a few plays, and his comments aren’t too inspiring. He isn’t taking accountability for his mistakes which ultimately changed the game. One of his holding calls wiped a deep pass to George Pickens off of the board, which would have set the Steelers up in the red zone. Jones was asked about killing the momentum for the team.
“It’s definitely frustrating. But you got to have a short memory. Like I said, it’s always a next play mentality because you don’t want it to become repetitive. You just gotta always try and flush it.”
Jones speaks about having a next play mentality, but he committed these penalties within seconds of one another. The flags completely killed the drive and forced the Steelers to give the ball back to the Broncos. This was frustrating for fans to watch, as the organization traded up for Jones in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Steelers’ Broderick Jones Struggles Are Concerning
Jones seemed primed for a considerable leap in play in his second season, yet he has done nothing but struggle. Throughout the preseason, he had trouble and ultimately lost his starting spot to a rookie ahead of Week 2.
Pittsburgh plans to move him back to his natural position at left tackle, but he hasn’t been able to beat out Dan Moore Jr. for the starting job. He will likely end up starting there at some point in the 2024 season, but Jones as shown time and time again that he can’t earn the left tackle spot.
How concerned are you with the play of Jones?
