Steelers sign 1st-round pick OT Broderick Jones

Offensive tackle Broderick Jones signed his four-year rookie contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday

All contracts involving first-round selections include a fifth-year team option.

The Steelers traded up from the seventeenth slot to pick out Jones with the 14th overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft

Jones was named an All-Southeastern Conference first-team selection after starting every game with Georgia last season.

“He’s a particularly talented guy,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said. “We were enthusiastic about him at every step of the method. We had dinner with him the night before their pro day. We had the possibility to spend time with him of their environment. It was interesting

“I used to be in Athens (Ga.) a yr ago and took a gaggle of his former teammates out and said to them give me a reputation that we’re going to be back for in 12 months. Universally Broderick’s name was the guy’s name we got 12 months ago. That was the primary time I heard his name. In investigating I see why they held him in such high regard. He’s a extremely good player without delay, however the upside is tremendous. He’s a ‘Diaper Dandy.’ We’re enthusiastic about getting him within the fold.”

Jones said his time with the two-time national champion Bulldogs has prepared him to play within the NFL.

“To be the very best, you have to beat the very best. No person plays as physical as (Georgia). No person was running the ball like us. No person was taking shots down the sector like us,” he said. “You’ve got just got to have the option to play dominant. You’ve to play physical. You’ve to play tough. You’ve to thug it out at the tip of the day. That is the only way you go in.”

Also on Friday, the Steelers signed defensive tackle Keeanu Benton out of Wisconsin to a contract

Benton is one among the Steelers‘ two second-round picks, with the opposite — cornerback Joey Porter Jr. — being the lone member of the team’s draft class yet to sign

–Field Level Media