Cam Heyward isn’t going to be impacted by the Pittsburgh Steelers’ next offensive coordinator hire. At least not directly. But if he wants to reach his goal of competing for a Super Bowl, or at least winning his second career playoff game, his fate is tied into how this offense performs. And who’s coaching it.
On the latest episode of his Not Just Football podcast, which mostly discussed football, Heyward reacted to the news of the team interviewing former Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith on Sunday.
“I think if you look at what he did in Tennessee having Derrick Henry, I think he won the MVP while he was there,” Heyward told co-host Hayden Walsh. “And [QB Ryan] Tannehill played very well that year as well. He’s definitely had a lot of success. I know last year wasn’t a lot of success and things went wrong and that’s the reason why he was fired. But he’s an OC.”
Smith’s success as the Tennessee Titans’ offensive coordinator paved his way to becoming the Falcons’ head coach. In 2019 and 2020, with Smith leading the offense, the Titans had one of the league’s top rushing attacks and scoring offenses, ranked in the top 10 in both seasons. Henry went over the 2,000-yard mark on his way to being named AP Offensive Player of the Year. Though to slightly correct Heyward, he did not win MVP. In fact, he didn’t receive a single vote as Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers ran away with the trophy.Â
But no question, Smith produced solid offenses. His time in Atlanta didn’t share that success, finishing 26th in scoring offense in two of three seasons while finishing 15th the other year. Still, the philosophy remained largely the same, running the ball early and often in a committee backfield, much like how the Steelers are built today. Pittsburgh will value his experience as a coordinator, something Mike Tomlin said he was looking for in the new hire. The Steelers’ last two coordinators, Randy Fichtner and Matt Canada, had never called plays in the NFL prior to Pittsburgh putting them in that role.
Heyward acknowledged the only time he’ll be asked to weigh in is on his podcast, admitting he doesn’t know where the Steelers are in their coordinator search.
With most of the staff down south, either in Frisco, Texas, for the Shrine Bowl or Mobile, Ala., for the Senior Bowl, a final decision may not occur for at least another week. To date, Smith is one of three men who have interviewed for the position, joining former Carolina Panthers OC Thomas Brown and Houston Texans QB Coach Jerrod Johnson.
Catch the whole episode below.
