LATROBE, Pa. -- Landry Jones has not thrown a regular-season pass in his first two seasons, which should absolve him of all the pressure usually heaped on an NFL quarterback drafted in the first four rounds.
But he is the highest-drafted quarterback by the Pittsburgh Steelers since the team selected Ben Roethlisberger in 2004. Jones went 115th overall after starting four years at Oklahoma. Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley called Jones' offseason workout performance “a little up and down.”
Pressure re-applied.
Before the Steelers' first training camp practice later Sunday, Jones, while speaking with ESPN, was reflective and honest about his place in the franchise.
He’s still trying to find it.
Big Ben’s eventual replacement? Jones isn’t even in that galaxy of thinking.
“I have to figure out what style of quarterback I’m going to be,” Jones said.
He admits Roethlisberger and longtime backup Bruce Gradkowski, who’s nursing a shoulder injury, have their own identities at quarterback. Jones is still working on his.
That identity, he believes, involves making good decisions with the football “and making plays when they are available.”
Jones threw for nearly 17,000 yards at Oklahoma, and though Haley’s offense has elements of the no-huddle, the pre-snap terminology is deeper and the game is faster.
That has taken Jones time to figure out. It showed at times in offseason workouts, which is why Jones admits Haley’s assessment is fairly accurate. “I could see where he could say that,” Jones said.
But Jones adds that he finished minicamp strong, leading the offense to a touchdown in a two-minute drill on the last day.
“Felt good to finish that way,” Jones said.
Former sixth-round pick Tajh Boyd will push Jones for third-string reps. If Jones responds, that identity he’s searching for should surface quickly. Gradkowski’s absence early in camp should benefit Jones.
If Jones doesn’t solidify a role soon, the Steelers might eventually use a second-round pick on a quarterback the way the Patriots did with Jimmy Garoppolo.
“They just want to see me progress, take more control of the offense, kind of make it my own,” Jones said of the Steelers’ offense. “Become more of a leader inside of it.”
