The greatest upgrade the Pittsburgh Steelers made this offseason may not have even been on the field. Over the past few years, the Steelers have seriously struggled to find a consistent offensive coordinator. Matt Canada’s offense looked like it walked straight out of the Stone Age, and it left the Steelers playing like they had one hand tied behind their back. However, it sounds like Arthur Smith has been a huge improvement so far.
Robert Mays, an analyst for The Athletic, recently revealed on The Athletic Football Show that he talked to an AFC team’s head coach about Smith, and the head coach was not happy that Smith landed with the Steelers.
“I was talking to a head coach in the AFC last week who was really mad that Arthur Smith is there,” Mays said. “The Steelers are on their schedule, and he would have just as soon not had Arthur Smith be the play-caller for the Steelers. If Matt Canada wanted to be there until the end of time, they were happy with that. Arthur Smith has a very good reputation with coaches around the league who have to play Arthur Smith.”
That’s about as good of an endorsement for Smith as there could be. If another team’s head coach is frustrated that he has to play against Smith’s offense, then the Steelers are in a good place. No one has probably felt like that since before Ben Roethlisberger suffered that brutal elbow injury. Smith’s offense with the Steelers hasn’t been tested yet, but it’s at least got a solid foundation.
It’s also so frustrating to hear that other teams treated Canada’s offense as a joke. Smith should bring some prestige back to the offense, though, as he’s been getting good reviews in Pittsburgh so far. Whether it’s Justin Fields or Russell Wilson at quarterback, the play-calling and scheme should be leagues above what the Steelers have had.
Smith struggled as a head coach, but his track record as an offensive coordinator is well-tested. With the Tennessee Titans, Smith helped resurrect Ryan Tannehill’s career, coached Derrick Henry to a 2,000-yard rushing season and made their offense threatening. The Steelers have similar pieces to that Titans team. If they can run the ball effectively, the pieces should fall into place for them to be competent on offense, at the very least.
While it was only a preseason game, and the team struggled as a whole, Smith’s offensive gameplan looked good against the Houston Texans. That should help inspire some confidence in his abilities. Hopefully that head coach’s fears are proven correct when they play the Steelers. If they aren’t, and the Steelers offense if awful again, it’s going to be a long season.
