Steelers QB Landry Jones considered in the bottom half of backup QBs, per ranking

I know what you were thinking when you read the title “Steelers QB Landry Jones considered in the bottom half of backup QBs, per ranking”...

...and water is wet.

I realize for fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers their love/hate relationship with Landry Jones tilts far more towards the hate side than the love. Sure, when he came off the bench and beat the Arizona Cardinals in 2015 it was amazing, but fans tend to remember the missteps more than the successes.

Needless to say, when I saw Sports Illustrated ranking all 32 NFL teams in regards to their backup quarterback situation, I was intrigued to see where Jones landed.

Before getting into the ranking, it should be noted Joshua Dobbs, 2017 NFL Draft pick in the fourth round, is also included in these rankings, but as a rookie there is little-to-no chance he takes the QB2 job away from Jones, especially with Jones’ brand new contract this offseason.

Nonetheless, Jones and Dobbs ranked 20th out of 32 teams.

Check out the rankings:

1. Jimmy Garoppolo, Patriots
2. Matt Moore, Dolphins
3. Trevor Siemian/Paxton Lynch, Broncos
4. Colt McCoy, Redskins
5. Deshaun Watson, Texans
6. AJ McCarron, Bengals
7. T.J. Yates/Cardale Jones/Nathan Peterman, Bills
8. Mitchell Trubisky/Mike Glennon, Bears
9. Chad Henne, Jaguars
10. Geno Smith, Giants
11. Drew Stanton, Cardinals
12. Kevin Hogan/Brock Osweiler/DeShone Kizer, Browns
13. Chase Daniel, Saints
14. Derek Anderson, Panthers
15. Nick Foles, Eagles
16. Ryan Mallett, Ravens
17. Case Keenum, Vikings
18. Matt Barkley/CJ Beathard, 49ers
19. Bryce Petty/Christian Hackenberg, Jets – special Jets category
20. Landry Jones/Josh Dobbs, Steelers
21. Trevone Boykin, Seahawks
22. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs
23. Matt Cassel, Titans
24. Kellen Clemens, Chargers
25. Connor Cook/EJ Manuel, Raiders
26. Matt Schaub, Falcons
27. Brett Hundley, Packers
28. Kellen Moore, Cowboys
29. Scott Tolzien, Colts
30. Sean Mannion, Rams
31. Jake Rudock/Brad Kaaya, Lions
32. Ryan Griffin, Buccaneers

The rankings aren’t, or shouldn’t be, a shock to anyone considering how Landry Jones has performed when starting the past two seasons; however, I find it hard to believe Bryce Petty, Matt Barkley, Chad Henne and anyone the Cleveland Browns put under center is considered to be better than Jones.

What fans should keep in mind is this: Is Landry Jones perfect? Not by any stretch of the imagination, but he is capable. Could he keep the team afloat for more than 3-4 games? No, but there aren’t many on this list who could do that themselves. This preseason Jones will get a ton of repetitions, again, and if Dobbs performs well after Jones, fans will be yelling for him to be the primary backup.

Just don’t count on it happening.

Landry Jones was re-signed for a reason, and the Steelers trust him if something happens to Ben Roethlisberger. Love him, few of you, or hate him, many of you, Landry Jones is sticking around as QB2, at least for this season.