Brian Schottenheimer Confirms Broderick Jones Will Compete For Cowboys Starting Job

Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer revealed that Broderick Jones is coming in to compete for a starting job.

Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones (77) celebrates while leaving the field after the Steelers' game against the Washington Commanders at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

We have a new starting competition on our hands after the Dallas Cowboys traded for offensive tackle Broderick Jones over the weekend.

Of course, the Cowboys acquired Jones in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers that saw Dallas give up third- and sixth-rounders in exchange for Jones and a fourth-round pick.

At first, it was assumed Jones was just coming in to be the swing tackle, but head coach Brian Schottenheimer revealed that the former first-round pick will actually compete for a starting job.

And that competition won't be with Tyler Guyton. Instead, Schotty said it's Terence Steele who will be competing for his job.

"When we made the trade, the first thing I did was I reached out to Terence Steele and told Terence that Broderick is coming here to compete with him to be the starting right tackle," Schottenheimer said.

"We're not going to move Broderick around. As you can imagine, Terence Steele was the ultimate pro (about the decision)," Schottenheimer added.

Schottenheimer went no to note that he specifically called Guyton to let him know this move had nothing to do with him and he's safe as the starting left tackle.

"He's done an awesome job and I wanted to make sure that he knew very clearly that this (signing) does not affect him," Schottenheimer said of Guyton.

Another nugget to point out is that Schottenheimer said rookie Drew Shelton is the current backup at left tackle.

A much-needed competition

Sep 4, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Dallas Cowboys offensive tackle Terence Steele (78) against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

While so much attention was on Guyton having to compete for his job this offseason, Steele flew mostly under the radar as a guy who should also have to earn his job.

Over the past three seasons, Steele just has not looked the same as he did in 2021 and 2022. Here's how his numbers have looked, per Pro Football Focus:

• 2023: 8 sacks, 54 pressures, 45.9 pass-blocking grade, 57.2 run-blocking grade.

• 2024: 9 sacks, 41 pressures, 57.5 pass-blocking, 78.9 run-blocking

• 2025: 6 sacks, 52 pressures, 54.9 pass-blocking, 70.2 run-blocking

We got a hint that the Cowboys weren't happy with what they were seeing from Steele this offseason after Schottenheimer noted how he needed to be more consistent in the middle of August.

"T-Steele's gotta play a little bit more consistent," Schottenheimer said of his right tackle, according to Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

The problem was that the Cowboys didn't have anyone to offer legit competition for Steele, as Nate Thomas, who is no longer with the team, and Drew Shelton struggled throughout the offseason.

Now, the Cowboys have that legit competition in Jones.

Can Jones beat out Steele?

Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones (77) against the New York Jets during the fourth quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It's certainly possible he will emerge victorious, but Jones winning the right tackle battle is far from a given.

The first issue Jones has is he needs to learn the Cowboys' offense, and he has less than two weeks to do it with Dallas' season-opening contest on Sept. 13.

Jones, who has 38 career starts under his belt, has also seen his own struggles during his career, with the former first-round pick having major issues with consistency.

In 2025, Jones permitted six sacks and 23 pressures in just 11 games before succumbing to a neck injury that led to surgery, ending his campaign early.

The year before that, Jones gave up 10 sacks and 43 pressures in 17 contests. Over three seasons in total, Jones has never posted a PFF grade above 59.0 in pass-blocking and his highest run-blocking grade was a 64.2.

Jones got off to a rough start in the preseason after allowing three sacks and four pressures over his first two games. He did settle down a bit in the preseason finale by not giving up a sack and allowing just one pressure.

The simple fact that the Steelers were willing to trade him tells you all you need to know about how uncertain Jones is, and the numbers back that up.

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