Friday is the deadline for NFL teams to exercise the fifth-year options on their first-round picks from the 2023 NFL Draft. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, this would mean the team has to make a decision about starting left tackle Broderick Jones.

However, given the circumstances surrounding Jones' neck injury and the way the 2026 NFL draft played out, it seems highly unlikely the Steelers will bother and instead let Jones play out his contract in 2026 and hit free agency in 2027.

The writing was already on the wall for Jones when it was reported that Jones suffered a setback in his recovery from his neck injury that put the start of his regular season in jeopardy. That worry was made worse when Pittsburgh used its first-round pick on offensive tackle Max Iheanachor.

Jones' injury came at the absolute worst time. Not only was he playing his best football and well on his way to getting that fifth-year option but his replacement, Dylan Cook played well subbing in for him. This called his future into question well before the team added Iheanachor.

This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Deadline for fifth-year option approaches for Steelers and Broderick Jones