Who was the most popular player in Pittsburgh from 1984 to 2003? The answer is simple, “the backup quarterback.”
OK, that’s not quite true, but it is no secret that fans often showed a lot more love for the understudies of Mark Malone, Bubby Brister, Neil O’Donnell and Kordell Stewart than they did for those starting quarterbacks.
The same could not be said during Terry Bradshaw’s (latter) days as a starter, nor for Ben Roethlisberger. Such was the cross that Landry Jones inherited when the Steelers took Jones in the 4th round of the 2013 NFL Draft, a cross which he continues to carry into free agency.
Landry Jones celebrates during his first NFL game against the Cardinals. Photo Credit: Pittsburghblitz.com
Capsule Profile of Landry Jones Steelers Career
As regular readers of this site know, living down in Buenos Aires deprives me of the ability to watch preseason football. Which is a shame because preseason gives fans their one and only shot at getting an unfiltered look at rookies and backup players.
- But friends of mine assured me during the 2013 preseason that the Steelers should consider bringing Charlie Batch back.
And these were not reactionary, “Fire everyone” types. Their estimation of Landry Jones didn’t change after the 2014 season, and a quick look at the stats confirmed that Landry Jones had under performed Brian St. Pierre in his first two preseason outings.
The Steelers took note and moved to challenge Jones during the 2015 preseason, bringing in Tajh Boyd, Devin Gardner, and Tyler Murphy but Jones held off those challenges. And even though the Steelers signed in Mike Vick when Bruce Gradkowski went down, Jones looked like he belonged, much to the consternation of fans who felt Landry Jones represented a wasted roster spot.
Landry Jones in the Steelers 2017 finale against the Cleveland Browns. Photo Credit: Archie Carpenter, UPI
Jones got his first action in 2015, coming off the bench to lead victories against the Arizona Cardinals and Oakland Raiders while struggling in his first start against the Chiefs. Jones also looked lost in relief of Roethlisberger in the Steelers playoff win over the Bengals.
In 2016 Landry Jones looked solid, although far from spectacular in a loss against the Patriots, while looking sharp in leading the Steelers backups to a New Year’s Day overtime comeback against the Browns.
The Case for the Steelers Resigning Landry Jones
Ever since the Steelers traded for Todd Blackledge in 1988, the franchise’s policy, with a few exceptions, has been to staff a veteran backup quarterback. But injuries to Charlie Batch and Byron Leftwich in limited play caused the Steelers to reevaluate that philosophy, leading them to draft Landry Jones, who made a commitment to developing him Jones as a backup.
The Steelers invested a lot of time and effort Landry Jones’ development, while hedging their bets. In 2016 Landry Jones showed that he’s matured into a competent, confident NFL backup quarterback. He knows Todd Haley’s offense, and looks comfortable in the huddle leading superstars like Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell.
Landry Jones is a legitimate NFL backup quarterback and, assuming his salary demands are reasonable, there’s every reason why the Steelers should keep him in Pittsburgh.
The Case Against the Steelers Resigning Landry Jones
After Charlie Batch got hurt in 2008 early in preseason, Mike Tomlin and Kevin Colbert had Byron Leftwich and Daunte Culpepper on the field in Western Pennsylvania trying out within a day. When he explained his decision, Mike Tomlin insisted that the Steelers were a Super Bowl team and that both players had been franchise quarterbacks. Should something happen to Ben Roethlisberger, he wanted a quarterback capable of taking the Steelers all the way.
- Can anyone suggest that Landry Jones is that caliber of a quarterback and keep a straight face?
The reality is that after taking every snap in 2013 and nearly every snap in 2014, Ben Roethlisberger has had to miss or leave games due to injuries on 5 separate occasions in 2015 and 2016. Landry Jones might be a game manager, but it is all but impossible to see him leading the Steelers on a Jeff Hostetlerque run through the playoffs (Google 1990 New York Giants if you’re unfamiliar and/or read our obituary of former Steelers offensive coordinator Ron Erhardt.)
Given that reality, the Steelers shouldn’t invest a valuable roster spot and valuable salary cap dollars in Landry Jones, and should instead look to the 2017 NFL Draft and/or Zach Mettenberger as their “Next Man Up” for the next time Ben Roethlisberger gets injured.
Curtain’s Call on the Steelers and Landry Jones
Steelers General Manager Kevin Colbert made no bones about the fact that the Steelers would love to have Landry Jones back. This will not sit well with a large segment of Steelers Nation nor with a good chunk of writers who cover the team.
- So be it. Although it is painful for a Steelers site to quote Buddy Ryan, but if you think like the fans, you’ll be one.
Might Landry Jones find a team that wants to pay him several million dollars above what he can get in Pittsburgh to wear the backup quarterback cap? Perhaps. If he does then more power to him. But Landry Jones is a viable number 2 quarterback that the Steelers have invested a lot in, and the Steelers should keep in Pittsburgh.
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