From quarterbacks coach to interim play caller to senior assistant, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Mike Sullivan has worn lots of hats over the past two years. Shifted into a catch-all sounding title, Steelers HC Mike Tomlin shed light on one job description it comes with.
“We’ve placed Mike Sullivan in charge of run after [catch],” Tomlin told reporters Tuesday during his weekly press conference via the team’s YouTube channel. “He’s a run-after catalyst for the group. Sometimes, if you wanna point of emphasis in a certain area, you put somebody in charge of it. You allow them to own it.”
Sullivan surely does more than just focus on run-after opportunities, but he seems to be in charge there. Where do the Steelers stack up? Per Pro Football Reference, they have 1,300 yards after the catch this season, 21st in football. On a more relative basis, the number is more impressive. Pittsburgh ranks seventh leaguewide with 5.7 YAC per completion.
Context is always important based on team personality. How often they throw, their passing game style (shorter passes lend themselves to more YAC than downfield throws), but the Steelers have posted good marks. In fact, their 5.7 YAC is their best number since finishing the 2018 season at 6.1.
It’s an area where WR George Pickens has grown throughout his career. He came into the league as one of the worst YAC receivers in football, partially because of his limited downfield route tree. As a sophomore, he turned into a top-10 YAC wide receiver. His 2024 numbers have dropped from 6.2 last season to 3.6 this year but he did damage post-catch Sunday in the Steelers’ win against the Bengals, taking a WR screen for a 17-yard touchdown while turning a third-down shallow crosser into a first down gain with an additional 15 yards after making the grab.
Elsewhere, TE Pat Freiermuth is averaging a career-best 4.9 YAC. WR Calvin Austin III leads Steelers wide receivers at 5.5 while TE Darnell Washington’s 6.8 YAC ranks third among all tight ends with at least 15 catches, only trailing the Green Bay Packers’ Tucker Kraft and Baltimore Ravens’ Isaiah Likely.
Hired in 2021 as the team’s quarterbacks coach, Sullivan is a former offensive coordinator who had his role shuffled in the offseason. After failing to land coordinator jobs elsewhere, he shifted from QBs coach to assistant as the team brought in Tom Arth for the role. In 2023, he finished the year as the team’s interim play caller after Matt Canada was fired while RBs Coach Eddie Faulkner was named interim offensive coordinator, handling organization and preparation.
Tomlin didn’t detail how exactly Sullivan teaches or emphasizes run after the catch. There are likely drills that reinforce it and weekly tape study to course correct. It’s interesting insight into one of Sullivan’s weekly responsibilities. The Steelers’ Mike Sullivan is surely having a better time than the Penguins’ version.
On the other side of the ball, Tomlin pointed out that DBs Coach Grady Brown is in charge of “turnover culture.” Pittsburgh leads the NFL with 25 takeaways this season, showing both coaches are doing a good job with their assigned roles.
