![](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,<svg height="439" width="780" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"/>)
In light of a new report that surfaced on December 26 indicating a change is likely coming at offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers, radio talk show host Andrew Fillipponi of 93.7 The Fan shared an eye-opening opinion.
Fillipponi urged the Steelers to hire former Denver Broncos head coach Nathanial Hackett to replace Matt Canada as offensive coordinator.
“I would fire Matt Canada and hire Nathaniel Hackett as Steelers offensive coordinator in a heartbeat,” Fillipponi wrote in a post on Twitter. “He was the Jags OC in ’17 when they scored 45 points vs the Steelers in the playoffs. They were 5th in scoring offense that year w/ Blake Bortles!
“Helped Aaron Rodgers win 2 MVPs too.”
The Broncos fired Hackett as head coach a day after losing 51-14 to the Los Angeles Rams in front of a national audience on Christmas Day. The Rams and Broncos went into the matchup with the same 4-10 record.
Under Hackett, the Broncos averaged 15.5 points per game, which is the lowest total in the NFL through Week 15. The Broncos also posted 316.6 offensive yards per contest, which was ranked 26th in the league, with Hackett as head coach.
Canada On His Way Out as Steelers OC?
Some Steelers fans have been waiting since the team’s bye week in early November for head coach Mike Tomlin to slip Canada a pink slip. It hasn’t happened yet, and the offense has continued to improve over the last couple months.
But the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo dropped a nugget while appearing on 93.7 The Fan that the organization doesn’t anticipate Canada returning for the 2023 season.
“I fully expect a change to be made at the end of the season,” Fittipaldo said. “The players know. The people inside the building know.”
Canada has frustrated Steelers fans with repetitive play calls and a conservative approach for most of this season.
His resume has been called into question since the Steelers hired him too. Canada didn’t have a job and had never coached in the NFL before the Steelers hired him as offensive coordinator.
The Steelers were 21st in points and 23rd in yards last year, which was Canada’s first as Steelers offensive coordinator. Pittsburgh is ranked 29th in points and 23rd in yards this season.
Potential Fit of Hackett as Steelers OC?
Hackett certainly has more NFL experience than Canada. Before becoming Denver’s head coach, Hackett served as an offensive coordinator or quarterbacks coach in the league for nine seasons.
His first offensive coordinator role was with the Buffalo Bills in 2013 under Doug Marrone, who Hackett coached under at Syracuse. After two years in Buffalo, Hackett followed Marrone to Jacksonville and eventually rose to offensive coordinator with the Jaguars as well.
After coaching in Jacksonville from 2015-18, Hackett joined the Green Bay Packers as offensive coordinator in 2019.
As an NFL offensive coordinator, Hackett led his unit to a Top 10 finish in points scored three times. His offenses were also ranked Top 10 in yards on three occasions.
He never helped a team to a Super Bowl, but Jacksonville and Green Bay each made a championship game appearance with Hackett as OC. As Fillipponi noted, Bortles had his best season, and Rodgers won his second two MVP awards under Hackett.
Assuming Canada doesn’t return as Steelers offensive coordinator, another interesting candidate would be former Indianapolis Colts head coach Frank Reich. A former NFL backup quarterback, Reich had been an offensive coordinator or head coach since 2014 before the Colts fired him on November 7.
Reich went 40-33-1 as Colts head coach. Hackett posted a 4-11 mark during his lone season in Denver.
Both seem to be on the short list of potential candidates entering Week 17, but there will certainly be other possibilities if the Steelers decide to pursue a change at offensive coordinator.
1 Comment