The Pittsburgh Steelers fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada midway through last season, after he captained one of the worst offenses in the league during his two and a half years calling plays. Mike Tomlin hired Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator this offseason with the plan for Smith to implement an entirely new scheme. Smith excelled as the Tennessee Titans’ offensive coordinator in 2019 and 2020, rejuvenating Ryan Tannehill’s career and leading one of the most efficient offenses in the NFL. Smith failed to maintain this success as the head coach for the Atlanta Falcons, but Tomlin and the Steelers have full faith in what he’s doing in Pittsburgh as the new offensive coordinator.
Steelers right guard James Daniels praised Smith’s coaching after today’s practice in an interview clip captured by Aaron Becker, in which he was asked what has changed under Arthur Smith’s coaching.
“Obviously it’s the scheme…I think everyone has complete trust in him and I don’t think we’ve had that before,” said Daniels. “Everyone trusts Art and he’s been doing a good job so far.”
Daniels is a six-year NFL veteran, and he has started at guard in 32 regular-season games for the Steelers since he joined the team in 2022. He experienced a year and a half of Canada’s attempt at running an offense, and clearly Canada didn’t earn his trust. Arthur Smith is a much different coach than Canada. They have different methods, philosophies, and their career trajectories were completely different. Canada rose through the college coaching ranks before being internally promoted from Steelers quarterbacks coach to offensive coordinator. Smith was an outside hire for the Steelers who climbed the NFL coaching ladder for over a decade before ending up in Pittsburgh.
Smith’s hiring received mixed reviews across the NFL media. Some pointed to his failure to maximize his young weapons in Atlanta — such as tight end Kyle Pitts and running back Bijan Robinson – as reasons for concern. But Tomlin and the Steelers trust him because his scheme, which relies on a physical run game combined with frequent play-action, is the exact offensive identity that the Steelers wish to build.
Outside of Daniels and Isaac Seumalo, the Steelers’ starting offensive line should be full of youth, especially at the tackle spot where the Steelers spent first-round picks in the last two drafts on Broderick Jones and Troy Fautanu. Tomlin and Smith want to dominate in the trenches, running the ball down the throats of opposing defenses with Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, making the lives of new quarterbacks Russell Wilson and Justin Fields a whole lot easier.
Daniels isn’t the only Steelers who’s commended Smith’s coaching during training camp. Wide receiver Calvin Austin III said Smith is “exactly what we need” a few days ago, and linebacker Elandon Roberts lauded his teaching ability, even though Roberts is a defender.
Whether Smith’s coaching translate to more points remains to be seen, but it’s clear that Smith already has a level of respect and trust from his players that Canada never achieved. The players have bought in to his methods, and that’s the building block of a great offense. Just listen to interviews from those who have played for Andy Reid or Kyle Shanahan.
Smith is facing a lot of pressure this season as Steelers fans are desperate for positive results on offense with the upgrades at quarterback. Hopefully, he’s able to keep the trust of his players, and earn leaguewide respect as a premier play caller. All that can be said is he’s off to a much better start than Canada.
