Courtney Culbreath/Getty Images Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin during a preseason game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at TIAA Bank Field on August 20, 2022.
The Pittsburgh Steelers may have managed a 13-10 win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas Eve, but the victory came in spite of Steelers offensive coordinator Matt Canada. At least, that was the sentiment expressed by former All-Pro wide receiver Steve Smith Sr., who labeled Canada’s offense as “Saturday-ish” during his pointed post-game analysis for NFL Network.
Steve Smith Blames Canada
“At times the (Steelers’) offense is inconsistent,” began Smith. “It isn’t inconsistent because they don’t have the playmakers. It’s inconsistent because the play designs are very Saturday-ish,” he offered, making a reference to the college game.
Asked to elaborate about the meaning of Saturday-ish, Smith said:
“It’s Saturday — this is Sunday. We’ve got to play big-boy ball and play with some better play design…. Don’t just randomly throw some stuff up there,” he added.
“Why do you have to wait until the end to get creative when your back is against the wall? Why do you have to wait to poke the bear and come out firing on all cylinders from the beginning. This was a special night, so you need to call some special plays,” concluded an exasperated Smith, who did approve of the jet sweep to Connor Heyward that allowed the Steelers to close out the game.
Yet the Steelers were well on their way to a deflating loss until rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett engineered a 10-play, 76-yard drive that began with 2:55 left on the clock and ended with a 14-yard touchdown pass to rookie wide receiver George Pickens.
Kenny Pickett 🤝 George Pickens
According to the NFL’s Media Research Department, it was only the fourth time in the Super Bowl era that a rookie quarterback threw a game-winning touchdown to a rookie wide receiver in the final two minutes of regulation.
Kenny Pickett’s 14-yard TD pass to George Pickens marked only the 4th instance in the Super Bowl era of a rookie QB throwing a game-winning TD to a rookie receiver in the final 2 minutes of regulation.
Yet touchdowns have been few and far between for Pittsburgh’s offense ever since Canada was promoted to offensive coordinator in January 2021. In fact, the Steelers have scored just 25 TDs this season, tied for third-lowest in the NFL behind the Broncos (22) and Colts (23). And in 2021 — with Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback — the Steelers scored the 7th-fewest touchdowns in the league (34).
That said, one of the biggest questions of the coming offseason is whether head coach Mike Tomlin will elect to replace Canada, who, according to Andrew Fillipponni of 93.7 The Fan (Pittsburgh), has a contract that runs through the 2023 season.
I’ve been told Matt Canada has another year on his contract. That his deal runs through 2023. If Kenny Pickett looks halfway decent (which he will) I see no way the Steelers fire him.
Canada admits he’s well-aware of the public criticism of his work, and Tomlin has been queried about Canada’s job status on multiple occasions. In late October, Tomlin was asked why it wasn’t time to fire his offensive coordinator. “Because I don’t feel like I’m there,” he answered.
Steve Smith Sr. is a former 1st-team All-Pro
As for the aforementioned Steve Smith, he had a 16-year playing career that got underway in 2001, after the Carolina Panthers made him a third-round pick out of Utah. Smith spent 13 seasons with Carolina before finishing with three seasons in Baltimore. He made the Pro Bowl five times, earning first-team All-Pro honors twice, once as a rookie and again in 2005, when he had 103 catches for 1,563 yards and a dozen touchdown catches. All told, he played in 219 games and caught 1,031 passes for 14,731 yards and 81 receiving touchdowns, as per Pro Football Reference.