Will the Steelers rearrange their coaching staff after hiring Arthur Smith as their offensive coordinator?
It’s funny how speculation changes among reporters as things become more concrete. For much of the past few months, most have maintained the Steelers would significantly overhaul their coaching staff this offseason.
Since then they’ve given defensive coordinator Teryl Austin a new contract and, outside of hiring Arthur Smith to fill the vacant offensive coordinator post, the latest speculation has suddenly become that there no more changes are expected to be made.
Somebody heard something in the past week or so that changed the complexion of how the journalists discuss the topic. Their own speculations ran counter to what others subsequently told them. But things can always change.
Going from Matt Canada to Arthur Smith is not necessarily seismic in terms of style and personnel. The Steelers didn’t hire Chip Kelly or anything, but perhaps Smith wants to do things in different ways than the assistant coaches have.
And the Steelers hired Smith to run the offense. Sure, they undoubtedly felt he could run the offense the way they want it run. He’s not going to have unilateral control of the position coaches working under him.
But what if he wants something different out of his tight ends? Does head coach Mike Tomlin stay married to Alfredo Roberts as the tight ends coach? He doesn’t even have to fire anybody. Teams switch coaches to different roles all the time. Smith himself wore many different hats, including tight ends coach.
One other aspect is this: rearrangement doesn’t have to mean subtraction. It could mean addition. Maybe the Steelers finally expand their coaching staff and bring in more eyes. A dedicated passing game coordinator, for example. They reportedly wanted to interview Zac Robinson, who served in that role for the Los Angeles Rams become becoming the Atlanta Falcons’ offensive coordinator.
Smith had some “extra” coaches on his staff in Atlanta before joining the Steelers. He had two offensive assistants and two defensive assistants, one a “senior”. He had an assistant wide receivers coach and multiple assistant offensive line coaches. And he had an assistant head coach. Tomlin did say there will be changes to the coaching staff, too.
The Steelers’ 2023 season has been put out of its misery, ending as so many have before in recent years: a disappointing, blowout playoff loss. The only change-up lately is when they miss the playoffs altogether. But with the Buffalo Bills stamping them out in the Wild Card Round, they have another long offseason to look forward to.
The biggest question hanging over the team is the quarterback question. Is Kenny Pickett the guy? Will he get another season’s reprieve without a serious challenge? How will the team address the depth chart? Do they re-sign Mason Rudolph, one of few significant unrestricted free agents?
The Steelers are swirling with more questions this offseason than usual, frankly, though the major free agent list is less substantial than usual. It’s just a matter of…what happens next? Where do they go from here? How do they find the way forward?
