Steelers/NFL category, Page 127
First Call: Luke Getsy beats out Mike Sullivan for reopened Raiders job; Le’Veon Bell wants a comeback with Steelers
Monday’s “First Call” sees a Pittsburgh Steelers assistant coach passed over for another NFL job by a former WPIAL standout. Le’Veon Bell is talking about a comeback. T.J. Watt gets a nod of approval from his peers at the Pro Bowl, and it was a good weekend of hockey for...
Under OC Arthur Smith, Steelers set to prove strong running game is key to NFL success
Given team president Art Rooney’s II desire for the Pittsburgh Steelers to feature a strong running game, it’s not surprising that he signed off on coach Mike Tomlin hiring Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator early last week. Smith’s tenure calling the plays in Tennessee, when he relied on bell cow...
Steelers announce hiring of Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator
Three days after the Pittsburgh Steelers completed their courtship of Arthur Smith, the organization announced his hiring Friday as offensive coordinator. Smith, 41, spent the past three seasons as head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. He previously spent two years as offensive coordinator for the Tennessee Titans. The Steelers interviewed...
Mark Madden: If the Steelers won’t change Arthur Smith’s staff, maybe they’ll upgrade personnel?
This is a magical time of year for Pittsburgh Steelers fans. Optimism runs rampant. Mock drafts pile up. We imagine that new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith will revolutionize, not be a different take on the same outdated offensive philosophy. (The vision is Mike Tomlin’s, not the coordinator’s.) We’re told Smith...
Football Footnotes: Why Arthur Smith’s offense worked in Tennessee and how it may work again with the Steelers
It’s been three days since word broke that the Pittsburgh Steelers plan to hire Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator. By now, you’ve probably read a lot about what went wrong for him as Atlanta’s head coach from 2021-23. Those teams never made the playoffs, going 7-10 every year. The last...
First Call: 2 NFL coaching moves have Steelers ties; bar set for Jake Guentzel’s trade return?
Friday’s “First Call” spotlights a pair of NFL coaching moves that tie into the Pittsburgh Steelers. We reflect on a very important Steelers Super Bowl anniversary. The market for a Jake Guentzel trade may have just been set for the Penguins. Also, both Robert Morris hockey teams have important conference...
U mad, bro?: Steelers fans mad about the hiring of Arthur Smith and media coverage of it
Mr. Smith isn’t going to Washington. Or Tampa Bay for that matter. He’s coming to Pittsburgh. And I wonder if he’s going to regret that. After all, the criticism of Mike Tomlin’s decision to hire Arthur Smith as Steelers offensive coordinator is getting awfully thick awfully fast. Believe it or...
First Call: Steelers meeting with standout center at Senior Bowl; a team that also may have wanted Arthur Smith
Thursday’s “First Call” has some background on the Pittsburgh Steelers’ hiring of Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator. The Steelers are meeting with a topflight center at the Senior Bowl. Ravens coaches are leaving Baltimore in a hurry. A former Penguins front office executive just got a contract extension in Vancouver....
Mark Madden: Hiring Arthur Smith hardly makes Steelers better but is a sensible choice with Kenny Pickett at QB
Arthur Smith is the new offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers. That’s an indictment of Kenny Pickett and potential opportunity for Ryan Tannehill. Smith relies on the run and plays it safe with quarterbacks. He wasn’t hired to develop Pickett. Smith will minimize Pickett and try to mask his deficiencies. That...
First Call: Ex-Steelers O-lineman lukewarm on Arthur Smith hire; decisions are made by Steelers’ others candidates
Not everyone is thrilled with the hire of Arthur Smith as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive coordinator. We get word on what happened with the other Steelers candidates. An NFL coordinator target with local ties is starting to get some interest. And the Duquesne Dukes are welcoming one of college basketball’s...
Tim Benz: Steelers’ reported hiring of Arthur Smith is as logical as it is uninspired
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ reported decision to hire Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator makes total sense. That’s not entirely a compliment, mind you. But it does make total sense. Credit the Steelers for being extremely pragmatic. Somehow, in one hire, the organization has managed to be thoroughly logical in its thought...
Reports: Steelers to hire former Falcons coach Arthur Smith as offensive coordinator
By planning to hire Arthur Smith, the Pittsburgh Steelers are getting an offensive coordinator who excelled in that role for two seasons with the Tennessee Titans but didn’t enjoy the same kind of success in three seasons as a head coach in Atlanta. The Steelers have agreed to hire Smith,...
Past and current Steelers weigh in on offensive coordinator prospects
Pittsburgh Steelers past and present are throwing their two cents into the mix of opinions on the offensive coordinator search. During his “Not Just Football” podcast, defensive captain Cameron Heyward suggested we should have an open mind about the idea of Arthur Smith becoming the offensive coordinator. Smith, fired as...
Tim Benz: Art Rooney II feels urgency about ending Steelers’ playoff win drought. Great, show us
During a season-ending media availability Monday, Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II was asked if there was a sense of urgency within the franchise to finally win a playoff game again. After all, it’s been seven years since that has happened, and Rooney’s franchise has accomplished that task in just...
First Call: Art Rooney II says O-line must get better, wants to keep Cam Heyward, discusses Najee Harris’ contact
During his various media stops Tuesday, Pittsburgh Steelers owner Art Rooney II talked about Cam Heyward’s future, Najee Harris’ fifth-year option and the state of the offensive line. We have all of those quotes for you in Tuesday’s “First Call.” Plus, there’s news about a former Steeler who is in...
Art Rooney II on playoff losses: ‘We’ve had enough of this’
Acknowledging there is a sense of urgency throughout the organization, Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II said Monday the franchise needs to get back to winning games in the playoffs. The Steelers haven’t won a postseason game since the 2016 season. The seven-year drought is the longest for the franchise...
Steelers president Art Rooney II wants to see ‘quality play’ out of QBs, Kenny Pickett in 2024
Art Rooney II is open to Kenny Pickett getting another shot to be the Pittsburgh Steelers starting quarterback. The Pittsburgh Steelers team president also is open to the organization bringing back Mason Rudolph provided he can be coaxed out of leaving in free agency. What Rooney isn’t open to is...
Madden Monday: Arthur Smith seems like a good fit for the Steelers, and that may be the problem
It sure seems like recently interviewed candidate Arthur Smith fits the perfect profile for what Mike Tomlin may want in an offensive coordinator. Smith, who interviewed for Matt Canada’s old job on Sunday, was an offensive line coach, tight ends coach and eventual offensive coordinator (2019-20) with the Tennessee Titans....
First Call: Arthur Smith interviews for Steelers’ OC job; another potential candidate is off the board
Monday’s “First Call” gives us another candidate for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ vacant offensive coordinator position. A former target is no longer available. A wide receiver draft prospect is getting some attention from the Steelers. The Duquesne women’s basketball team had an eventful win Sunday. And the Robert Morris hockey team...
Steelers veteran CB Levi Wallace takes pending free agency in stride
In the hours between the end of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ playoff loss in Buffalo and when Levi Wallace went to bed the night of Jan. 15, Wallace already had turned his attention to non-football matters. “Now that it’s over,” Wallace said Jan. 16, “I was already sending out messages yesterday...
Plenty of options available as Steelers pursue competition for Kenny Pickett at QB
Taking Mike Tomlin at his word during his end-of-season news conference, Kenny Pickett has reclaimed his role as QB1 for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Tomlin, of course, also promised “competition.” That term is open for interpretation, as are the Steelers’ methods for evaluating options in providing that aforementioned competition. It can...
Mark Madden’s Hot Take: How about Jurgen Klopp as Steelers’ next offensive coordinator?
The Steelers are trying to convince a promising young offensive mind to take the job as offensive coordinator and conquer the notion that you can’t shine excrement. They might have to settle for older and recycled. Here’s the solution: Pull a reverse “Ted Lasso” and hire Jurgen Klopp. Klopp just...
Unique skill set leads to unique rookie season for Steelers 7th-round pick Spencer Anderson
A backup guard? Swing tackle? Emergency center? Eligible tight end? What, exactly, was Spencer Anderson’s role as a rookie for the Pittsburgh Steelers? The answer, of course, is “all of the above.” Like all players, Anderson would love to earn a starting spot and stick to one position. But for...
Steelers interview Texans QB coach Jerrod Johnson for offensive coordinator job
Houston Texans quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson became the second person to interview for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ vacant offensive coordinator position, the team announced Friday. Johnson, 35, spent an offseason and training camp with the Steelers as their No. 4 quarterback in 2012. He was briefly part of five other NFL...
First Call: Falcons’ coaching hire could impact Steelers’ OC plans; ex-Steeler wants to join Mike Tomlin’s staff
Friday’s “First Call” sees how some things falling elsewhere in NFL coaching circles may impact the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive coordinator hire. A former Steeler may want to rejoin the team on the coaching staff. We examine the local college basketball scene this weekend, and the Penguins’ contest against Florida Friday...
