If former Arizona Cardinals head coach and offensive guru Kliff Kingsbury is to land in Pittsburgh as the next offensive coordinator under head coach Mike Tomlin, the Steelers would be lucky to get him, at least according to one former player who spent time under Kingsbury in the desert.
Former NFL offensive lineman A.Q. Shipley stated during an appearance on the Pat McAfee Show Wednesday that Kingsbury is exactly the guy you’d want as an offensive coordinator in Pittsburgh. Shipley, who was picked by Pittsburgh in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL Draft, said Kingsbury would “infuse the new-age scheme” offensively into the Steelers’ organization.
Kingsbury, of course, is in the news in Pittsburgh due to NBC Sports’ Peter King telling 93.7 The Fan on Tuesday that Kingsbury will talk to the Steelers regarding their open offensive coordinator position.
“He’s exactly what you want. You want to basically infuse the new age scheme into that Pittsburgh Steelers locker room that they haven’t had it in years. And he’s so good,” Shipley said regarding Kingsbury. “I mean, there were so many times he would come up to us and be like, ‘Hey man, this is what I do. I get guys open,’ and when you turn on his tape, there’s guys open all over the field.”
Shipley played under Kingsbury in Arizona in 2019 before leaving for Tampa Bay. That one season under Kingsbury was eye-opening for Shipley though, who had nothing but praise for his former head coach.
Kingsbury had an up-and-down tenure in Arizona, going 28-38-1 before being fired after the 2022 season, eventually landing at USC as an offensive assistant under head coach Lincoln Riley. Now, he’s looking to get back into the NFL ranks as a coordinator and has plenty of interest around the league.
He recently interviewed with the Chicago Bears before they hired Shane Waldron, and he reportedly had an interview with the Philadelphia Eagles on Tuesday. King stated that Kingsbury will speak with the Steelers, though no official report has been put out there yet.
During his time in Arizona, Kingsbury put together a solid offense, especially on the ground. The Cardinals were the eighth-best rushing attack in his first season and then eclipsed 2,200 yards on the ground in his second season. It took awhile for the passing game to catch up, but once it did the Cardinals had a balanced attack.
The issue was on the defensive side of the football in Arizona.
With the success he’s had working with quarterbacks such as Patrick Mahomes, Kyler Murray, and even the record-setting Case Keenum at the college level, Kingsbury is an attractive option for the Steelers, who need to find a way to get the most out of Kenny Pickett moving forward.
He might be exactly what the Steelers need, especially with his new-age offensive principles.
