The Pittsburgh Steelers endured an embarrassing and painful streak in which they were held to under 400 yards of offense for 58 consecutive games, but that turned around on a dime when offensive coordinator Matt Canada was fired.
After their Week 12 victory, which included the Steelers surpassing 400 yards on offense, the duo of Eddie Faulkner and Mike Sullivan gave Steelers fans a glimpse of hope, but that doesn't mean this is how the position will look beyond the 2023 season. If the Steelers do decide to look outside their Pittsburgh box for their next offensive coordinator, one person they should avoid is Kliff Kingsbury.
Steelers Shouldn't Consider Kliff Kingsbury in the Future
Ahead of the Steelers' Week 13 clash with the Arizona Cardinals, the talk of the town has been the offense coming back to life. Granted, the proof is entirely in their Week 12 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, but for a Steelers offense that has struggled for years, 421 yards is certainly something to be proud of.
On the All Steelers Talk podcast on Thursday, Donnie Druin, publisher for All Cardinals, spoke from experience about why the Steelers should avoid Kingsbury at all costs. Kingsbury was the head coach for the Cardinals from 2019-22, and despite signing a massive extension through 2027, was fired following a 4-13 campaign in 2022. The dismissal was for good reason, according to Druin, and the similarities between what the Steelers just rid themselves of (Canada) and Kingsbury are too great for there to be any upside.
"I've only seen Kliff as a head coach, and Kliff as a head coach - this is not slander at all — just couldn't cut it. For him to be the OC and the head coach, there are reasons why guys like Sean McVay and Kyle Shanahan are just so rare...If Steelers fans were tied of screen passes and halfback draws, do not turn on a Kliff Kingsbury game."
The frustration over the Canada-led offense finally ended in Pittsburgh, so the prospect of bringing in someone who would just restart that cycle of rage isn't something Pittsburgh fans would be in support of. Especially now that they have seen how green the grass is without Canada.
"The amount of times the Cardinals had been in 2nd and 10, or 3rd and 15 because of a halfback draw or because of a screen pass. The amount of time spreading the field horizontally instead and not vertically — astounding."
Steelers Making Forward Progress with Faulkner and Sullivan
The biggest concern about a post-Canada situation in Pittsburgh was finding someone to take his place, especially so late in a season. The Steelers simply don't make changes like the one they did after Week 11, but to do so when they had a winning record and a foothold in the AFC playoffs was an even bigger risk.
Every player on the Steelers knew that they would be under a microscope following Canada's firing, and their response to support both Faulkner and Sullivan was to leave Week 12 with a 16-10 victory over the Bengals and a 7-4 record. With the Cardinals on the horizon in Week 13, the Steelers have everything to lose, and yet the positive momentum seems to be building behind this team. All Pittsburgh needs to do to assure themselves a spot in the playoffs is to win — that's all: win the rest of their games.
If you had asked that of the Steelers a few weeks ago, it would have seemed a massive task without hope, but something about the departure of Canada has turned this squad from a challenged group of talented players into a cohesive unit that truly plays for each other. That, above all, will be huge in the homestretch of the 2023 season.
How many yards per game will the 2023 Steelers average without Matt Canada? How many touchdowns will Kenny Pickett end up throwing in 2023?
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