The Steelers are now back at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, facing down a long regular season that looks a lot more promising given how things have gone leading up to it. Finishing just above .500 last year, they anticipate being able to compete with any team in the league this season with second-year QB Kenny Pickett leading the way.
They’ve done a great deal to address what they identified as their shortcomings during the offseason, which included addressing the offensive and defensive lines as well as the secondary and the inside linebacker room, which is nearly entirely different from last year. The results have been positive so far.
Even well into the regular season and beyond, there are going to be plenty of questions that need answered. When will the core rookies get to play, or even start? Is the depth sufficient where they upgraded? Can they stand toe-to-toe with the Bengals and the other top teams in the league? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout the season, as we have for many years.
Question: What’s more likely, Hines Ward in the Hall of Fame (without Senior Committee help) or coaching Steelers wide receivers?
For as much of a legend as he is, Hines Ward’s name doesn’t get churned out in the news cycle too often. But he’s been brought up for three different (though not all wholly unrelated reasons) in the past week or so.
Once again, the Steelers’ all-time leading receiver failed to qualify for the final 15 candidates for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. At around the same time, it was reported that he would not be retained as head coach of the San Antonio Brahmas, which is part of whatever the merger of the XFL and USFL will be called.
As an extension of the latter bit of news, Ward’s name has been brought up once again in conjunction with the Steelers’ wide receiver coach position. It’s not a vacant one, mind you, currently helmed by Frisman Jackson, but it is a job that he has previously considered, reportedly.
Here’s the thing: Ward is now out of a job. It’s widely and reasonably anticipated that the Steelers will shake up the coaching staff in 2024. They need to hire a new offensive coordinator, which would mean a new staff. On top of that, it’s generally believed that the Steelers hire position coaches on two-year contracts, and Jackson is completing his second year with the team, so they wouldn’t even have to “fire” him, which they don’t like to do.
One might argue that the stars are aligning for Ward to become the Steelers’ wide receivers coach this offseason if it’s a job that he wants. But I think it’s fair to question if he would want to take on the task of keeping George Pickens focused and engaged, and getting the most, physically and mentally, out of Diontae Johnson. Jackson has tried to get these guys to block. We shouldn’t assume that Ward would do any better.
