President Art Rooney II of the Pittsburgh Steelers all but ruled out a blockbuster trade to acquire a quarterback this offseason. The obvious followup question, though, is what counts as a “blockbuster” quarterback trade.
On February 11, Steelers Depot’s Alex Kozora wrote acquiring New England Patriots signal caller Mac Jones would not be a blockbuster. Kozora then argued acquiring Jones should be a possibility for the Steelers because of his cheap price tag.
“Jones is coming off a miserable third season, throwing just 10 touchdowns to 12 interceptions and repeatedly getting pulled and benched before being sat for good to close out the season,” Kozora wrote. “His value has never been lower.
The idea of Pickett vs. Jones isn’t an enthralling camp battle. But the alternative is Ryan Tannehill or some other veteran equivalent competing with Pickett this summer. The alternatives aren’t much better. They won’t cost draft capital a trade would, but they’d also be more expensive than Jones’ rookie deal base salary.”
Jones is entering the final year of his rookie contract. By May, his team will have to decide whether to pick up his fifth-year option. But that should be an easy decline based on his play.
Jones made the Pro Bowl his rookie season in 2021. But in 2023, he led the Patriots to a 2-9 record while posting a 64.9% completion percentage. He also threw more interceptions (12) than touchdowns (10).
Patriots Set to Trade QB Mac Jones: Report
Kozora connecting the Steelers to Jones came on the heels of NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, Tom Pelissero and Mike Garafolo reporting that he is a trade candidate this offseason.
“Even though Bill Belichick is gone, former first-round pick Mac Jones — who lost the starting role and ended up third string by the end of the 2023 season — is a trade candidate in the coming weeks and most likely will end up elsewhere for the 2024 season,” wrote the NFL insiders.
That report makes it sound like a foregone conclusion that Jones will be elsewhere in 2024. If the Steelers are interested in acquiring him, that could only work in their favor.
