NFL First Thoughts: Pittsburgh Steelers
Don't expect Matt Canada's offense to unleash its creativity this year.
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There’s a radio show in Pittsburgh that Steelers OC Matt Canada went on, and he was asked to describe what the plans were for the offense in 2023. Canada provided a weird response that caught people off guard. He said, “It’s not like I’m coming in here and deciding what the offensive plan is.” The host was thrown off and said, “What do you mean? You’re the offensive coordinator!” Canada then went into a bit of a ramble where he said the plan for what the offense is going to be comes from an organizational plan, and said he’s not coming in and deciding what it is. He then suggested the plan comes from Art Rooney, the owner, and Mike Tomlin, the coach.
If you think back to two seasons ago when Canada was hired, everything was about creativity and a modern offensive plan. He was really praised for it. People thought highly of his potential as Steelers OC. But we haven’t seen any of that creativity translate on the field.
When you hear Canada go on the radio and infer that it isn’t him that gets to dictate how the offense is run, it’s a bit odd, especially considering he works for a defensive-minded head coach. Last year, the Steelers were criticized due to their lack of creativity, the constant jet sweeps, the conservative play calling, the run after run after run that was unsuccessful. Every analyst was taking jabs at this offense. But if there’s a directive coming from Tomlin to be conservative, it’s likely because they feel strongly about what they have on defense. So the Steelers, by the sounds of it, have been in this spot where this is all intentional—to have their play calling be as conservative and vanilla as it’s been to avoid mistakes and let the defense make games competitive while giving them a chance to win in the 4th quarter.
In a recent article, Canada stated:
“I think the identity was very clear in the last nine games last season. We ran the ball very well. We were physical. You saw who we drafted, who we acquired, I don’t think there’s any question about what our identity is going to be. We want to run the football. We want to be physical. We want to be a good team that throws the ball down the field when we know we can take advantage of what the defense is giving us. I think our identity has been well-known and we’re going to stay where we’re at going into 2023.”
So there’s a clear emphasis from the Steelers on running the football. It’s easy to point at a team with this approach, who is announcing it as such, and criticize them. But this extra piece of context is interesting. Canada is going into his final year of his contract. It didn’t make sense to get rid of him. It would have also meant another new offensive coordinator for QB Kenny Pickett, who is just getting acclimated. The Steelers are likely to do everything they can to stay close, be conservative, limit mistakes, and grind out victories.
The Steelers could be an attractive underdog or potential under team in 2023.