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After some brief speculation about the team’s head coach was quickly settled, the Pittsburgh Steelers now actually do have a big decision to make on their coaching staff.
They need a new offensive coordinator.
Now one of the team’s captains has chimed in with his thoughts on the team’s OC options.
During the January 19 episode of his “Not Just Football” podcast, Cameron Heyward named Eric Bieniemy, Shane Waldron, and Bobby Slowik as candidates he’d like to see get the job.
“A guy like Eric Bieniemy, who’s had a lot of success in Kansas City,” Heyward said. “A name that’s been talked about, not just with the Steelers, talking offensive coordinators in general, is Shane Waldron, Bobby Slowik. I don’t like to play GM, but there are some interesting names out there. It’s got to be a guy that’s able to get a lot of guys involved and lead a group, so it’s going to be interesting.”
Unfortunately for Heyward, the Steelers are going to have a tough time landing anybody on his list.
The Bears hired Waldron after this episode of the podcast aired.
Slowik is currently interviewing for head coaching jobs and is seen as one of the favorites to take over in Tennessee. Even if he doesn’t get a head coaching job, he won’t be leaving C.J. Stroud and the Texans to head to Pittsburgh.
Bieniemy is also very unlikely, but is in an interesting position. The Commanders have a new owner, just got a new general manager, and are looking for their head coach.
The Commanders’ offense wasn’t good in 2023, but that falls more on Sam Howell than Bieniemy.
If he doesn’t get promoted to head coach, maybe the new regime could decide they want a complete overall as they also prepare to draft their franchise QB, but it would be truly surprising to see Bieniemy looking for a new job.
While those options likely won’t be available to the Steelers, they do have a number of names to consider for this very important hire.
A Pivotal Decision for the Steelers
The Steelers’ choice at quarterback is going to be the one that steals most of the headlines during the offseason, but the team’s OC choice is just as important if they’re going to fix their offense.
There were only four NFL teams that scored less than the Steelers in 2023. One of them had a rookie QB.
Two others played most of their season with a backup quarterback.
The other is preparing to get a new QB.
The one positive for the Steelers’ offense was that they looked better after firing Canada as long as Mitch Trubisky wasn’t on the field.
They even scored over 20% of their total points for the season in just Weeks 16 and 17.
The team can’t afford to have another OC that holds the offense back.
They need Kenny Pickett to develop into at least a reliable starter in 2024 or the team is going to miss its window to contend with some of their biggest stars while they wait to find their next QB.
Who they pick as their next OC is going to be a huge factor in whether the Pickett pick ends up working out.
Luckily, they have plenty of options to choose from.
Plenty of Options Being Thrown Around
While the Steelers probably won’t be getting any of the coordinators Heyward named, there are still plenty of options available for them to take a look at.
Alex Van Pelt was recently let go by the Browns despite the team finishing 10th in points scored in 2023 while starting four different quarterbacks and playing without their star running back for most of the season. Van Pelt was drafted by the Steelers in the 90s.
The Steelers could look to bring in Pep Hamilton after considering him for the job the last time it became available. Hamilton didn’t coach in 2023 after a rough 2022 with a bad Texans team, but a successful stint with the Colts before that could make him an appealing option.
Darrell Bevell has coached with Mike Tomlin before and is part of an impressive offensive staff in Miami.
Names like Chip Kelly and Kliff Kingsbury have even been brought up as options to return to the NFL from the college ranks.
The Steelers will have plenty of options to choose from. They just need to make sure they get the right one or the offense could struggle again in 2024.
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