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Get Scouted Scouting CareersLast Sunday, after more than two years of waiting, Landry Jones finally played in his first NFL regular-season game for the Pittsburgh Steelers. This Sunday, the former National Scouting Report prospect could make his first NFL start.
“It’s safe to prepare as if Landry Jones is our quarterback this week,” Steelers coach Mike Tomlin told reporters this week. “He’s healthy.”
After backup quarterback Mike Vick went down with a hamstring injury in the third quarter Sunday, Jones completed 8 of 12 passes for 146 yards and two touchdowns, leading the Steelers to a 25-13 victory over the Arizona Cardinals at Heinz Field. Vick started for the third time in place of injured starter Ben Roethlisberger, who has been sidelined with an MCL sprain and bone bruise in his knee.
Roethlisberger could be at least a week away from returning. A lot will depend on how his knee responds to football-related movements in practice.
Asked if he was comfortable starting Jones, Tomlin told reporters: “You know, we have some options here.”
Jones said he would be up to the challenge of starting against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.
“It would be great,” he told reporters. “I don’t know what’s going to happen with Mike or Ben, but it would be awesome to get a whole week of practice in and go into the game really prepared.”
A former standout at Oklahoma University, Jones said he still can’t believe he finally played in his first NFL game.
“Oh, man. It was kind of surreal,” he told reporters. “It was just fun getting back in there and getting to play again.”
Jones sometimes doubted if he ever would get a regular-season snap with the Steelers. Despite playing a lot during the preseason, he struggled at times during training camp. Then the Steelers signed Vick in August.
“Landry probably played more preseason snaps than anybody in the history of the National Football League this year,” Tomlin joked with reporters after Sunday’s game. “He got better and it was displayed today. He had the opportunity to contribute in a big way.”
Jones told reporters he often thought about what it would be like to finally play in a regular-season season, joking that he had “a lot of years to think about it.”
“It’s just different because you actually feel like you contributed something,” he said. “I’ve been here for three years now and haven’t gotten to play. I feel like I have contributed, but not in a way like I felt I could. It’s fun to get in [the locker room] and know you actually had a part in the game.”
NSR scouts discovered Jones in 2005. A sophomore at Artesia High School in New Mexico, he evolved into one of the top quarterbacks in the country. In his three years as a starter, he passed for 7,013 yards and 89 touchdowns, leading Artesia to back-to-back Class 4A state championships in 2006 and 2007. In his senior year, the Class 4A Player of the Year threw for 3,433 yards and 45 touchdowns, including 325 yards and a school-record seven TDs in the state championship game.
Ranked among the top pro-style high school quarterbacks in the country, Jones was considered New Mexico’s best college prospect since 10-year NFL defensive lineman Alan Branch in 2004. He was recruited by dozens of major colleges, including Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, Wisconsin, Colorado and Virginia, before ultimately signing with Oklahoma.
After being redshirted his first year, Jones took over as starting quarterback midway through his redshirt freshman season after starting quarterback Sam Bradford suffered a season-ending shoulder injury and bolted for the NFL.
From 2009-12, Jones passed for 16,646 yards and 123 touchdowns, leading the Sooners to two Big 12 championships and three bowl victories. He was selected in the fourth round (115th overall) of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Steelers.
After two-plus seasons as the Steelers’ third-string quarterback, Jones finally got his chance to play in the NFL.
“I just still can’t believe I got in the game and got to play. You know what I mean?” Jones told reporters. “I’m still kind of reeling from it.”
National Scouting Report is dedicated to finding scholarship opportunities for athletes who possess the talent, desire, and motivation to compete at the collegiate level. We’ve helped connect thousands of athletes with their perfect college.