Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said on Tuesday during his weekly press conference that there has been no change to the role of offensive coordinator Matt Canada in the Steelers offense or his role when working with quarterback Kenny Pickett. The response to the report comes directly after Sunday. Insider Jordan Schultz reported that Canada has taken a more significant role in the team’s development of their young quarterback.
The growth and development of Pickett is off to a rocky start in his second year as a pro. He had his best game of the year on Sunday but was still imperfect. However, the first two games were disastrous for the offense and Pickett. The Steelers’ offense averaged just 9.5 points per game through two games and a league-low 12 first downs. They were the only team in the league that failed to register a first down in the first quarter.
Now, Canada seems to have embraced a smaller menu of runs, hoping it can lead to more concept diversity in the offense. Running back Najee Harris noted that the team visited each other during the week and met with the running game to pick out what they liked. Canada did not have a magical fix to the issues with the offense on Thursday last week, but it does seem that whatever they did, they found some balance and worked off play action well.
Pickett ended 6 of 8 on play-action passes for 61 yards and a touchdown on the day. He posted a 135.4 passer rating on those plays. It came just a week after the team found some success on those plays against the Cleveland Browns. George Pickens, in particular, ended up a benefactor of those. Canada noted during the week that the team wanted to get some play action going, but they needed to find balance.
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