For lots of Pittsburgh Steelers fans, there remains a burning question for the 2023 Pittsburgh Steelers offense. And while some doubt whether QB Kenny Pickett can take the leap, there is a much larger contingent wondering if offensive coordinator Matt Canada might be holding him back from taking this leap.
Gerry Dulac touched on this in the pregame radio show on Steelers.com, prior to Pittsburgh’s first preseason game.
“Matt Canada’s in the final year of his contract. If they struggle again, they’re not going to bring him back.” Dulac predicted. “It’s Matt Canada’s first time that he has the incumbent quarterback for the following season. You have a young team, and we saw the progress late in the year. Their running game looking very good. The game-winning drives. Kenny Pickett made some mistakes, but he protected the ball and he produced some of those late last-minute victories.
“There was a lot of optimism in terms of the offense turning the corner, taking baby steps, and looking better. So I can understand why they brought him back, but if they average 18.1 points a game again this year I don’t think Matt Canada will be back.”
As Dulac noted, the Steelers averaged just 18.1 points under Canada last season. This was the team’s second-lowest total since 1990, edging out 2019 by under a tenth of a point per game. Especially early in the season, this lack of scoring was felt, as the team was averaging just 15 points per game heading into their Week Nine bye.
That’s just not going to cut it in today’s NFL. Sure, the Steelers have one of the best defenses in the league and are always well-coached, but if you want to compete in 2023, you need to score. Over the last three seasons, 25 teams averaged under 20 points per game. Just the 2022 Tampa Bay Buccaneers made the playoffs, and they went 8-9 and won a mediocre NFC South.
The Steelers have done their part in providing Canada with the weapons he needs to succeed. They’ve also grabbed some specialists, in the likes of speedy WR Calvin Austin III, and massive TE Darnell Washington. Some have called for Canada to be a more creative play-caller, to best make use of these types of players.
In a contract year, the pressure is on Canada. The team showed real improvement down the stretch of last season, but still never scored more than 30 points in a single game. That’s gonna be what it takes some days in this loaded AFC. The defense is strong, but you can’t expect them to win you every game, you have to be at least capable of winning a shootout.
And that’s all Steelers fans are asking. Just being capable enough. No one is expecting Matt Canada to flip this into a top-three offense this season. They just want to make sure he isn’t the one holding Kenny Pickett back.
