Some will say the talent level on the roster, especially at some key positions, is what is holding the team back. Others will say it is the coaching staff. One has to be chosen because at the end of the day the Pittsburgh Steelers went 10-7 last season and qualified for the playoffs while facing some significant adversity and attrition. CBS Sports’ Jordan Dajani released a coaching staff-tier list for all NFL teams and placed the Steelers in the second-highest tier near the top of the league.
Their staff didn’t quite make the cut for the “cream of the crop” tier at the top but were labeled “pretty good, but with some questions”. Here is what Dajanji wrote on the head coach:
“Mike Tomlin has STILL not had a losing season as head coach of the Steelers, which is impressive considering his offense was one of the worst in the league in 2023. Mason Rudolph and Najee Harris did step up late in the year, though.”
As long as Tomlin is the head coach, the Steelers will continue to rank pretty high in these coach rankings. That part is controversial to fans of the team, mostly because his playoff drought has extended another year with no obvious end in sight. The Steelers’ last playoff win came in the Divisional Round of the 2016 season. Including the conference championship game from that season, the Steelers have lost five straight, and all but one of those games were at least a two-score blowout.
Still, for a team in transition without the quarterback position figured out, the continuation of the non-losing streak is impressive. Even if it draws ire from the fan base.
Dajani continued by talking about the new offensive coordinator. Here is what he wrote:
“The hiring of Arthur Smith is a controversial one. On one hand, he couldn’t get the most out of his talented weapons in Atlanta, but on the other, he’s had success as an offensive coordinator — especially when it came to scheming for the run.”
Smith’s history does send mixed messages regarding his tenure as OC of the Tennessee Titans and head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. But if you are comparing apples to apples, he was much more successful in the role he now holds in Pittsburgh.
The Titans were the third-best rushing team in the league in 2019 with 2,223 yards at 5.0 per carry. The following year they were the second-best with 2,690 yards at a 5.16 average. That bodes well for the Steelers, who found their footing as one of the top rushing teams in the league over the back half of the 2023 season.
Finally, Dajani touched on Teryl Austin, who was reportedly extended for two more years. Here is what he wrote:
“As for Austin, he’s been a defensive coordinator for three different NFL teams now. Pittsburgh was tied in having the No. 6 scoring defense in 2023 (19.1 points allowed per game).”Â
That sixth-place finish is made even more impressive given that the Steelers could barely possess the ball on offense for the first half of the season. Also, the Steelers suffered a lot of key injuries on defense with Cam Heyward, Cole Holcomb, Kwon Alexander, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Keanu Neal, Damontae Kazee, and others all missing significant time.
The Steelers have a lot of money invested in their defense, so expectations are high. The final stretch of the regular season proved a lot about Austin’s defense as the team was using street free agents at inside linebacker and safety and still holding teams’ scores down.
