Cowboys Plan on Avoiding Same Mistake Broderick Jones Says Steelers Made

Broderick Jones detailed a reason behind his struggles with the Steelers and the Cowboys are looking to avoid making that same mistake.

Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones (77) takes the field against the Green Bay Packers at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

A lot went wrong for Broderick Jones with the Pittsburgh Steelers, but the former first-round pick pointed to one thing specifically that didn't help his cause.

Jones had some good moments with the Steelers, but his tenure in the Black and Yellow was disappointing overall. Jones never lived up to his draft billing, which is part of the reason why the Steelers shipped him off to Dallas, he now gets a fresh start.

Another reason the Steelers were willing to trade him might have had to do with Dallas' offer, as a report suggests Pittsburgh was not shopping him.

What were behind Jones' struggles, you ask?

Well, Jones pointed to not being able to focus on one tackle spot as something that impacted him negatively

“For me, I would just say bouncing around positions, just not being able to get my feet set," Jones said. "That was a challenge for me. Coming in, hopefully I can stick to one side. Compete for that job, get comfortable, get familiar with it, get familiar with who I’ll be playing next to and go from there.”

Cowboys plan to avoid Steelers' mistake

Dallas Cowboys head coach Brian Schottenheimer looks on during the game between the Cowboys and the Saints at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It's funny Jones says "hopefully I can stick to one side," because that is something head coach Brian Schottenheimer said the Cowboys want to do with the 25-year-old.

"We're not going to move Broderick around," Schottenheimer said after announcing that Jones would be competing for the right tackle job.

Jones played snaps at both right and left tackle during his stint with the Steelers.

In his rookie season in 2023, Jones played at left tackle in his first four games before the Steelers moved him to right tackle, where he remained for the rest of the season.

Pittsburgh kept Jones on the right side for all but seven of his snaps in 2024, but the former first-round pick was pushed into action at left tackle in 2025 before his season ended early because of injury.

Broderick Jones' golden opportunity

Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Broderick Jones (77) at the line of scrimmage against Green Bay Packers during the first quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

When the Cowboys acquired Jones, the assumption was he is coming in to be the swing tackle and insurance policy for both Tyler Guyton and Terence Steele. However, the Cowboys have bigger plans.

Schottenheimer noted that Jones will actually be competing for the starting job at right tackle, where Steele has struggled over the past three seasons and, based on comments from Schotty during camp, this offseason, also.

"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," Schotty said, according to Patrik Walker of DallasCowboys.com.

Schotty also made it clear that Guyton is safe, at least for now.

"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.

Schottenheimer's comments on Steele last month had to do with his lack of consistency. Clearly the Cowboys feel he's a bigger issue than Guyton otherwise Jones would probably be a competitor on the left side.

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

While Steele is most definitely beatable, it's not like Jones is a lock to beat him. Like Steele, Jones has struggled in pass pro during his career, and the fact that Jones has to learn the Cowboys' offense in less than two weeks won't help him, either.

That said, even if he doesn't win the starting job, having Jones around as an insurance policy is better than what Dallas had before acquiring him.