Georgia offensive tackle Broderick Jones was taken by Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft with pick No. 14.
Jones is from Lithonia, Ga., and measured at 6-foot-5 and 311 pounds at the NFL combine.
During his Georgia career, Jones started just 19 games for the Bulldogs. That is the fewest of any draft-eligible offensive linemen in this year’s class.
“The best version of me is just showing how athletic I am, being physical,” Jones said at the NFL combine. “Just trying to dominate my opponent, that’s really it. I feel like I’m closing in on it. I still feel like my best football is ahead of me, but I feel like I’m pretty close.”
But Jones might have the highest ceiling of any offensive line prospect in this class. He was a difference-maker for the Bulldogs.
He made four starts for Georgia during the 2021 season, filling in for an injured Jamaree Salyer. Jones was also substituted into the 2022 National Championship Game at left tackle, helping Georgia’s offense move the ball in the 33-18 win. He was an All-Freshman team selection for the Bulldogs.
Jones started every game at left tackle for Georgia during the 2022 season. The Bulldogs went 15-0 this past season, thanks to an offensive line that was a finalist for the Joe Moore Award. Jones was a First Team All-SEC selection. Georgia’s offense averaged 41.1 points per game.
Georgia has a strong recent history of putting offensive linemen into the NFL, with Salyer and Andrew Thomas being just two recent examples. Isaiah Wynn and Isaiah Wilson were also first-round offensive tackles to come out of Georgia.
Jones very much appears to be next in line.
“Really talented. If you look at the guys we’ve had, they’ve got length, they’ve got athleticism,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “He’s probably faster and maybe twitchier than some of those guys, getting to the second level. Maybe not as powerful as an Andrew (Thomas) or one of those guys. But in a pass pro league, he’s elite at that.”
Jones is the first offensive player from Georgia to be drafted in this cycle. He joins Jalen Carter as a first-round picks. Jones was a 5-star recruit in the 2020 recruiting cycle, the same one that produced fellow first-round tackles Paris Johnson Jr. and Peter Skoronski. Jones was the No. 2 ranked tackle in that recruiting cycle.
What an NFL team is getting in Broderick Jones
2023 NFL Combine results: Offensive tackle Broderick Jones
40-yard dash: 4.97, 1.74 10-yard split
Height: 6-foot-5
Weight: 311
Broad Jump: 9′
Vertical jump: 30′
Arm length: 34.75′
More Broderick Jones stories from around DawgNation
- Broderick Jones: 3 things about the most athletic offensive tackle in the 2023 NFL Draft
- How Broderick Jones went from ‘raw’ to one of the best left tackles in college football
- With a push from Kirby Smart, Broderick Jones wants to be the best left tackle and leader for Georgia football
- Broderick Jones runs sub 5-second 40-yard dash at 2023 NFL combine
- Broderick Jones looks to continue Georgia’s strong run of left tackles at 2023 NFL Combine
- How the 2020 Under Armour All-American game played a key role in shaping this Georgia football team
- Georgia football must answer left tackle questions to slow ‘game wrecker’ Will Anderson
