Things might look a bit bleak for the Pittsburgh Steelers, especially after firing offensive coordinator Matt Canada and sitting at 6-4 on the season following a frustrating 13-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns on the road.
Pittsburgh sits behind the Baltimore Ravens and Browns in the AFC North and seventh in the final Wild-Card slot in the AFC playoff picture.
A big change occurred Tuesday with the firing of Canada, throwing the offense into flux even further. Yet, despite the changes and the uncertainty, Good Morning Football’s Kyle Brandt still believes in the Steelers moving forward.
Appearing on GFMB Wednesday morning, Brandt was emphatic about “trusting the brand” that is the Steelers, and that the change with the offensive coordinator will help the Steelers get back on track moving forward on that side of the football.
“Pittsburgh. I see that logo, and I’ve said this many times: that’s the American flag as far as the NFL was concerned. You always trust this brand and now it’s a lot more than that,” Brandt said on why he has the most faith in the Steelers moving forward relative to the AFC Wild-Card race. “We’ve got uncharted territory of Mike Tomlin saying in the middle of a winning season, ‘I’m gonna let go of the coordinator.’
“I think it’s a very exciting time for the Pittsburgh to do this, ’cause if you’re thinking our offense has been woeful, like objectively really bad and we’re sitting at six and four, we are gonna start giving the ball to the right running back. We’re gonna start finding a way to get George Pickens involved psychologically and physically, and Kenny Pickett, we’re gonna get him going.”
Though it’s a difficult time for the Steelers as Canada has lost his job — something you never want to see — it is an exciting time for Pittsburgh. The Band-Aid has been ripped off. Two new sets of eyes in running backs coach Eddie Faulkner and quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan are going to bring their perspectives to the game planning and the play calling.
That could help the Steelers get running back Jaylen Warren more involved, scheme up more touches for Pickens, and potentially even utilize the middle of the field more, an area that Pickett has largely avoided throughout his time in Pittsburgh.
Despite all the struggles offensively, the Steelers sit at 6-4. They’re starting to get a bit healthier, too, with safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and defensive tackle Montravius Adams getting closer to returning. If they can just figure some things out offensively, they’ll be in business.
That’s why it’s hard to doubt this team moving forward, which Brandt stated emphatically he won’t do.
“They will be there in the end.”
We’ll see if that comes true.
