PHOENIX — Some four months after suffering a neck injury that ended his 2025 season, Pittsburgh Steelers left tackle Broderick Jones is still on the mend as the team is on the cusp of embarking on its voluntary offseason program.
“He’s starting to do more and more,” general manager Omar Khan said from the site of the NFL owners meetings at the Arizona Biltmore resort. “I’ve talked to him a couple times over the last couple weeks, and he’s in a good place and ready to work hard and do whatever he can to be ready to go.”
The Steelers’ first-round pick in 2023, Jones moved to left tackle last season and despite early struggles was playing at a higher level by the time of his injury during a November game against the Chicago Bears.
Dylan Cook ultimately started at left tackle for the Steelers’ final five games (including playoffs).
Jones’ up-in-the-air status comes during a time when the Steelers must decide whether to exercise a fifth-year contract option on him that would be worth approximately $19 million for the 2027 season. The deadline is May 1.
Guard-ing their options
One spot that appears open on their depth chart is at left guard, where the starter for the past three seasons — Isaac Seumalo — departed in free agency.
With the draft still to come, at present the Steelers’ options for a Seumalo successor are Spencer Anderson and Brock Hoffman. Anderson has been the Steelers’ top backup at guard the past three seasons; Hoffman served in that role for three years for the Dallas Cowboys and joined the Steelers as a free agent.
“I think we’ve got really good veteran competition,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “It’s a group that I’d obviously like to add some young guys to that room.”
Hoffman joined Dallas in 2022 when McCarthy was coach there and spent three seasons under him. He has 16 career starts.
Anderson was a seventh-round pick of the Steelers in 2022. He has made 11 starts for the team and last season played an extensive role as the “jumbo” tight end.