The firing coach has nothing to change a little effect on the Steelers’ offense.
The Pittsburgh Steelers were hoping that a change at offensive coordinator would open up the offense, but that has not come to fruition.
After historic offensive difficulties, the Steelers eventually fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada.
Canada’s attack lacked consistency and failed to achieve high yardage and point totals.
Change is required: The Steelers must find a new offensive coordinator in order to save quarterback Kenny Pickett and boost the team’s scoring powers.
The citizens of Pittsburgh saw their collective prayers answered on November 21, 2023, when Matt Canada, the team’s then-offensive coordinator for two-and-a-half seasons, was dismissed. It was a watershed moment in the franchise’s history, since it was the first time the team sacked a coordinator in the middle of the season since 1941.
The team then announced an unusual plan to replace Canada, with running backs coach Eddie Faulker promoted to offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan calling the plays on game day. The early returns appeared promising, as the team recorded its first 400-yard offensive game since the pre-Canada era. But it’s been the same old narrative since then, with a terrible offense failing to back a talented but fatigued and injury-riddled defense.
It’s tough to call Canada’s Pittsburgh Steelers offense anything other than a clueless plan, with so many nonsensical plays and repetitive routes. Given how frequently the Steelers found themselves in third-and-long situations, negative plays might as well have been a mainstay of the playbook.
Canada was noted for its pre-snap action, and jet sweeps were a regular component of the weekly game plan. Though such simple approaches were effective over his two decades of college coaching, they rarely succeeded at the NFL level. Part of the problem with those plays was how frequently rival defenses saw them.
Canada’s offense ranked 30th in yards per pass attempt in his debut year with the Steelers in 2021, with a late-stage Ben Roethlishberger at the helm. They finished 26th last year with first-round rookie Kenny Pickett. This year has been the same, with them ranking 26th once again. In none of those seasons, the Steelers averaged more than 6.4 yards per throw.
With the personnel remaining unchanged and the Steelers’ bye week already past, implementing a new scheme to replace Canada’s after he was fired would have been practically impossible. Even with new coaches in charge, the Steelers can’t score more than 20 points in a game.
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