The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t announced the departure of ILB coach Aaron Curry, but he no longer appears on their website. In fact, he is already on the New York Jets’ coaching staff after two seasons in Pittsburgh. While he had an expiring contract, it seemed as though the team liked him, so the sudden news came as a surprise to many.
“I thought they liked him, that’s why I was a little bit shocked”, Mark Kaboly said on 93.7 The Fan. The Jets announced the hiring of former Steelers coach Aaron Curry on Friday. There have been no public comments from Pittsburgh since then, though we rarely gain clarity with such changes.
Kaboly speculated about the possibility of the Jets offering Curry more money than the Steelers did. That is a possibility. There are no caps or floors on NFL coaching pay, so perhaps Aaron Glenn just liked what Curry did with the Steelers’ inside linebackers the past two seasons. He inherited ad hoc units and dealt with injuries on the fly, rising to significant challenges.
“Let’s see who they bring in to replace him”, Kaboly said of the Steelers filling Curry’s shoes. “Maybe that’d shed some light onto whose idea it was. I just don’t think it was the Steelers’ idea. I think Aaron Curry, maybe he just likes New York”. He added, “I don’t know, but it did seem curious”.
A former top-five draft pick, Aaron Curry did not have a great playing career. He did seem to show some acumen for coaching, though. He spent three years cutting his teeth with the Seahawks before the Steelers signed him to his first positional role.
The Steelers turned over their inside linebacker room in Curry’s first season here. They signed Cole Holcomb, Kwon Alexander, and Elandon Roberts in free agency, and they used all three liberally. After Alexander and Holcomb suffered season-ending injuries, Curry had to adjust on the fly with players off the street.
This past season, the Steelers gave Curry more ammunition. They spent big in free agency on Patrick Queen, then used a third-round pick on Payton Wilson. Perhaps the Steelers felt he should have gotten more out of Queen, who was named a Pro Bowl alternate.
Or perhaps, as Kaboly suggests, this was simply Aaron Curry choosing the Jets over the Steelers. Perhaps he is getting a bigger paycheck in New York or has a clearer path to a promotion. Unless anybody involved in the situation offers a direct comment, all we can do is speculate.
We often don’t actually get answers, though—in fact, we almost never do. When the Steelers parted with former WR coach Ike Hilliard, players in the locker room were reportedly surprised and upset. Aaron Curry seemed to be well-liked by his players, so I’m guessing the reaction is similar.
In the meantime, the Steelers will have to find a replacement for Aaron Curry, whether they wanted to or not. We offered a preliminary list of potential candidates, but we will have to wait and see what they decide. Whether it offers any insight into Curry’s departure, that’s even less clear.
