Earlier this week, former NFL punter and current analyst Pat McAfee made some news on ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show by speculating whether the 2023 season is the beginning of the end for Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin.
“All the people that have defended Tomlin — and I think we’re a part of that group — it’s getting to a point where it’s like, ‘Hey, you’re the only human not seeing what everybody else is seeing here. You’re the only one,” McAfee said. “And when it becomes that, and we appreciate him dying on his shield and everything like that, there might be some changes at the end of the year.”
On his Not Just Football podcast, Steelers DL Cameron Heyward told McAfee that the season is still young and he shouldn’t overreact after four games.
“Damn, it’s the fourth week. How many more weeks we got? I love Pat, and I know he’s got a segment on there called “Don’t overreact, but damn, don’t overreact yet man,” Heyward said. “Personally, I want to get back and help out and hope I can change that narrative. But every guy’s gotta take responsibility for that. We love Coach T, we’re very fortunate to have a man of his character and how he pushes us. But everyone’s entitled to their opinion and we have to go out there and attack it. The only way you attack it and the only way you get the stench off you is by winning on Sunday.”
It’s important to note the Steelers are 2-2. They’ve had much worse starts under Tomlin and still found a way to end up respectable at the end of the year. But the fanbase is tired of consistent mediocrity, and after getting blown out 30-6 against the Houston Texans in Week Four, there’s a growing sense that 2023 is going to be more of the same.
It’s too early to say it’s the beginning of the end for Tomlin, sure. But another season where the Steelers finish barely above .500 isn’t going to cut it. This is the most talented roster Pittsburgh has had in years, and while they’ve been down two key pieces in Heyward and WR Diontae Johnson since both went down in Week One, the offense has looked worse than the anemic offense the Steelers had for the first half of last season, and the defense has struggled to stop the run and in coverage.
It hasn’t been pretty, and people are getting fed up. As McAfee said, even people who have defended Tomlin for years are beginning to get annoyed. He didn’t do himself any favors with his Tuesday press conference, where he gave some pretty weak answers.
But like Heyward said, it’s a long season. If the Steelers win on Sunday, they’ll lead the AFC North heading into their bye week. They need to get that stench that Heyward mentioned off of them. There’s a lot of doubt about this team and the coaching staff right now, so it’s easy to see where McAfee, who’s from Pittsburgh, is coming from.
Getting Heyward and Johnson back (likely Johnson first) is going to bolster this team on both sides of the ball, and you have to think the coaching is going to be better. The Steelers have looked unprepared, and the offense has been a mess. If they can figure things out and tweak the scheme, plus get healthier, they can still be a playoff team and all the Tomlin talk will look silly in a few months.
But that’s no guarantee. The Steelers have to go out and prove it, and the players have to take some ownership and accountability and start to execute. If that doesn’t happen, the upcoming offseason could certainly be interesting.
Watch the full Not Just Football episode below:
