The Pittsburgh Steelers offense in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Rams looked like it may have found some form of identity, as the unit finally found a way to get the rushing game going for their first rushing touchdowns of the year. However, the offense was quickly brought back to reality in Week 8 against the Jacksonville Jaguars as it was only able to put up 10 points at home in the 20-10 loss. Fans have been begging for Matt Canada to be fired for what seems like forever, and Ben Roethlisberger has finally had enough as well.
Roethlisberger Names Ideal Replacement For Canada
The Steelers loss on Sunday was the 54th consecutive game where they were not able to produce 400 yards on offense, which is the longest current streak in the NFL by far. Roethlisberger has spoken a lot about the struggling offense on his podcast "Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger." He has never fully made any negative comments about Canada, who was his offensive coordinator is his last season back in 2021, until now when he brought up the possibility of replacing him on his most recent episode.
"I think if the team were to move on from Matt, I would love to see Byron Leftwich come in here and be the offensive coordinator. He was there. He played under Coach [Mike] Tomlin. He understands what it means to be a Steeler. I think he's a great offensive coordinator."
Byron Leftwich and Roethlisberger know each other well, as Leftwich had two different stints in Pittsburgh as one of Roethlisberger's backups. Leftwich played for the Steelers in 2008, and again from 2010 through 2012. He won a Super Bowl with the team in 2008, and also was on the team when they lost the big game to the Green Bay Packers in 2010.
Leftwich retired from playing in the NFL back in 2012 after he spent the season with the Steelers. He took some time off from football before being hired as a coaching intern by the Arizona Cardinals in 2016. The Cardinals head coach at that time was Bruce Arians, who was Leftwich's offensive coordinator in Pittsburgh.
Leftwich would then serve as the team's quarterback's coach in 2017 and 2018 as well as the interim offensive coordinator in 2018. He and Arians were both fired from the Cardinals after going 3-13 in 2018, which was the organization's worst record since 2000.
Leftwich was hired in 2019 by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, once again under Arians, as the team's offensive coordinator. In 2020, with Tom Brady at quarterback and Leftwich calling the plays, the Buccaneers were able to win Super Bowl LV over the Kansas City Chiefs. Leftwich received some head-coaching interviews following the 2021 season, but he was unable to win any of the positions and returned to the Buccaneers for the 2022 season, but he was fired afterward.
Once Leftwich was fired following the 2022 season, which was his first without having Arians as his head coach, it immediately raised some questions. Would he ever have gotten the job had Arians not been the coach? How much of the offense's success in 2021 was due to Brady? Leftwich has yet to been given another shot to showcase his play-calling ability since being fired, as he does not currently hold any coaching position in 2023.
The Steelers have made it clear they won't be moving on from Canada in the middle of the 2023 season, as they had the perfect opportunity to do so during their bye week and didn't. They have also denied Leftwich any opportunity to join the team in some capacity, as reports started coming out that the organization ignored his calls when he was trying to join the team as an offensive consultant. This is likely only because it is midseason, and it is unlike the Steelers organization to make such drastic moves once a season kicks off.
Whether it be as the offensive coordinator or in a smaller role, bringing in Leftwich next season does seem like something Mike Tomlin and the Steelers would do. Tomlin loves to hire from within the organization, so bringing in an offensive mind that knows what it is like to be a Steeler and has a decent amount of experience playing for the team and working with Tomlin makes sense. Assuming the organization decides to move on from Canada following the 2023 season, which seems like an obvious decision, Leftwich would be an ideal replacement.
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