Breaking down what Broderick Jones competing to start at RT means

The Dallas Cowboys added to their offensive line last Saturday when they acquired offensive lineman Broderick Jones in a trade with the Pittsburgh Steelers. They sent 2027 third- and sixth-round picks to the Steelers and received a fourth-round pick in 2027 in return.

Jones played three seasons in Pittsburgh after being selected in the first round in 2023 after a stellar career on the collegiate level with the Georgia Bulldogs. He played in 45 games with 38 starts. During his time there, he got experience playing both left and right tackle, which made him a perfect candidate to be a swing option in Dallas.

Once the transaction was made, an interesting thing occurred. Head coach Brian Schottenheimer made a call to right tackle Terence Steele to inform him that Jones would be competing with him for starting duties. According to Schottenheimer, Steele took the news like a pro and appreciated the communication on the matter. With that said, what does all this mean?

The first thing is pretty obvious, and that’s that Schottenheimer has full control of what’s going on with the Cowboys’ roster. From the moment he got the job in Dallas, he expressed that guys would have to compete and that nothing was going to be given to anyone.

Steele has a ton of experience with 91 starts in 96 career games. There have been some questions if he’s still the answer going forward, which makes it understandable why a guy like Jones, who’s experienced himself, would be brought in to provide some competition.

Schottenheimer also said that Steele is still in the driver’s seat and Jones will be working to show that he is capable of being the guy as well. However, this move also puts Steele on notice that if he has any kind of slip up, Jones will undoubtedly be there to takeover as the starter at right tackle.

Jones hasn’t quite lived up to his draft status, but he could easily replace Steele, and the latter certainly needs to take the competition seriously, which undoubtedly he will. Jones feels that part of the problem in Pittsburgh was his flip-flopping from the right to the left side.

“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.”

Jones will play exclusively on the right side in Dallas as was made clear by Schottenheimer in a press conference. It also means, for now, the main backup at left tackle is Drew Shelton, a rookie who hasn’t exactly inspired confidence.

Coming into training camp, offensive tackle was a position that was considered a bit of a question mark. It feels like it still is, but at least the Cowboys are trying. They also added veteran Wanya Morris to the practice squad.

Holding competitions for positions is exactly how it should be. Everything is earned in the game of football, and every season you have to update your résumé. So, let the competition begin and may the best man win.

By the end of this year, who do you think will be starting at right tackle?