The Steelers 2022 season turns out like a teach smash, one that anyone has filmed in sluggish movement, and it does no longer appear poised to get a lot better anytime quickly.
There is not any loss of blame for doable reasons. Matt Canada’s play calling is just terrible, and it is advisable to see the glance of angst on his face overdue within the 4th quarter of the Bills sport. Some other people need to blame the offensive line too. There is a level of reality to the offensive line’s struggles, however take into accout the offensive line didn’t surrender 38 issues and 552 overall yards both.
Others will surely blame the truth that T.J. Watt has neglected 4 video games, as to why the Steelers misplaced. If this is true, you should ask why there isn’t extra ability round him in order that within the match of his absence the workforce will have to be capable of nonetheless win. In the 70s, if Joe Greene neglected a sport, it didn’t imply doom and gloom. Heck accidents have decimated the Steelers protection, however even then, the protection used to be nonetheless slightly wholesome till the Jets’ sport.
The level is that each one of those play a function within the Steelers season going sideways. It’s no longer like all of sudden, at first of 2022, they only was a dangerous workforce. They have slowly drifted that means for fairly a whilst. Yet one query must be requested. How did the Steelers get to this place? Well, the straightforward reality is that that is a Mike Tomlin problem.
After staring at the Bills pound the Steelers it was transparent that the workforce’s adventure to get to this spot and to have their worst beating since 1988 culminated by the hands of deficient decision-making over Tomlin’s tenure. This treatise isn’t an indictment that the Steelers want to fireplace Tomlin on the finish of the season however fairly that the Rooneys want to put Tomlin on understand that what he has completed isn’t running.
Tomlin’s profitable season streak is completely meaningless
It turns out that heading into the season, too many of us are enthusiastic about the truth that Tomlin, as head coach, hasn’t ever had worse than an 8-8 document. Yet, whilst the document unto itself is spectacular and one thing no longer many coaches can accomplish, for the NFL it’s a moderately meaningless stat. In the NFL, the objective is profitable Superbowls. You want a profitable season to succeed in that, however what has Tomlin completed as a head coach? He gained the Superbowl in 2008, but with a workforce, he in large part inherited from Bill Cowher, then he misplaced to the Packers within the Superbowl in 2010.
Between 2007-2010 within the playoffs, Tomlin had a 5-2 document. Since 2011-2022 he has a 3-7 playoff document. The Steelers have no longer gave the impression in an AFC Championship sport, have no longer gained a Superbowl in 14 seasons, and have no longer even gave the impression in a Superbowl in 12 years. Adding to it, between 2011-2022 they’ll have neglected the playoffs 5 instances.
So adequate nice, he has no longer had a shedding season since 2007, however as Bill Cowher’s gamers light off, they have fared worse in statistics, each offensive and defensively, as a workforce. In 2020 he used to be 11-0 after 12 weeks, after which the workforce collapsed sooner than a area of playing cards within the wind, just about getting humiliated by means of the Browns within the wildcard sport.
It makes you surprise, had Cowher stayed on as a coach, how a lot additional he may just have taken the Steelers. Sure It took Cowher a whilst to make things better in Pittsburgh. In his 4th season, he made a Superbowl however nonetheless lacked a quarterback to have a entire workforce. He drafted Roelithberger and in the end gained the massive sport. He completed with a 12-9 playoff document, whilst Tomlin’s is 8-9, and 5 of the ones wins are partially because of the workforce he inherited from Cowher.
Let’s step out of doors the Steelers and take a look at Bill Belichek. With his quarterback Tom Brady, he gained six titles in 9 appearances and performed in 13 AFC convention video games. Nineteen of his first 20 seasons have been profitable seasons and should you rely his time in Cleveland, upload every other 3 shedding seasons. Yet in 2022, Belicheck is poised to have every other shedding season. Ask Belicheck if he would business six titles to care for a profitable season streak. The most probably solution is not any. Even he’s going to inform you it’s about profitable championships.
The Steelers, for some reason why, have been enamored by means of Tomlin’s common season good fortune; they have neglected the larger image. Something right here should exchange going ahead.
Tomlin isn’t an effective workforce supervisor
One large grievance of Tomlin, which seems to be true, is that he has a problem surrounding himself with excellent assistant coaches. In the phrases of Mark Madden, a Pittsburgh-based sports activities journalist, Tomlin is a “megalomaniac.”
He ran off emerging coaches to make sure they didn’t take the limelight or that they will not be a danger to his tenure as head coach. The problem is obtrusive, and Sunday’s loss to the Bills handiest magnified it. Tomlin had Bruce Arians, and after 2012 he used to be long gone. Tomlin stated in a press convention in 2012 that Arians used to be retiring. Well, that isn’t precisely true.
On HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumble, Arians later admitted Tomlin informed him he used to be letting him move on the finish of the season. Mike Florio wrote a extra descriptive piece explaining that Tomlin fired Arians. The level is that from the lack of Arians, the activity went to Todd Haley, Randy Fichtner, and Matt Canada.
The succession appeared to worsen and worse. Now with Canada, what number of people have screamed to have him fired amid the 2022 season? Considering nobody concept he did a stellar activity in 2020, the offense handiest appeared to paintings when Roethlisberger usurped Canada’s keep an eye on and known as his personal sport within the 2d part.
Although, to Tomlins’s credit score, on Tuesday at his weekly press convention, he did trace they may fireplace Canada, or he may step down on the finish of the season or one day. However, he desires to stay continuity for his rookie quarterback a minimum of for now.
Then Tomlin had Mike Munchak. The respectable tale is that he took a an identical activity in Denver to be nearer to circle of relatives. The unofficial tale is that the Steelers simply let his contract expire and selected to let him move. They may just have made him the offensive coordinator over Fichtner. The prevalent principle, true or no longer, is that Munchak may just have been a coach-in-waiting danger to Tomlin, and that’s the true reason why they let him move.
Then take a look at the defensive facet of the ball. Despite being the head coach, Tomlin additionally turns out to have this want to be the defensive coordinator additionally. First, relying on which principle you subscribe to as to why Dick LeBeau resigned from the Steelers. Was it as a result of the deficient play of the Steelers protection, accidents, or as a result of Tomlin sought after to put in Keith Butler? After Butler’s tenure, Pittsburgh reporter Gerry Dulac broke a tweet that Butler didn’t name defensive performs, however Tomlin did. Butler showed Dulac’s tweet. Seems transparent Tomlin sought after a sure guy, no longer LeBeau.
So then, after Keith Butler is going, Tomlin promotes every other puppet, linebacker coach Teryl Austin. Austin’s {qualifications}, you ask? He used to be the defensive coordinator for the Lions from 2014-2017 and had an 11-4 document in 2014, two 9-7 data one 7-9 season. He left after the firing of Jim Caldwell.
The lions interviewed him as head coach however didn’t rent him. Later, he additionally interviewed for head training vacancies with the Browns, Giants, Eagles, and Titans. He later alluded that some interviews might have handiest been to fulfill the Rooney Rule necessities. Nonetheless, he then was the Cincinnati defensive coordinator in 2018. He used to be fired sooner than the tip of the season after the Bengals had 3 consecutive video games of permitting 500-plus yards for the primary time in workforce historical past.
He then was the Steelers linebacker coach and is now the defensive coordinator. Why? In 2022 the Steelers protection has allowed a median of 347.2 yards in keeping with sport; this isn’t an Austin problem it’s a Tomlin problem. Tomlin is pulling double accountability because the head coach and Defensive coordinator.
Which leads one to invite, so why rent Brian Flores as a linebacker coach? Sure he’s a gifted coach however wouldn’t it have made extra sense to put in Flores as defensive coordinator? Yes, he can most probably coach linebackers smartly. Yet it kind of feels, being a former head coach, possibly he will have to be calling the defensive performs. Tomlin does no longer need that, finally. Not at the offensive facet of the ball and unquestionably no longer at the defensive facet of the ball.
Cowher, whilst he used to be head coach, a minimum of knew the worth of surrounding himself with gifted coaches as smartly. Dom Capers, Tim Lewis, and Dick LeBeau have been his defensive coordinators. Cowher additionally had Ken Whisenhunt, Chan Gailey, Ron Erhardt, or even Mike Mularkey all respectable offensive coordinators to various levels. Cowher used to be no longer interested in a profitable streak; he sought after titles and used to be no longer previous placing others in assistant positions that might succeed in that. To that level, Cowher had a mindset like Belicheck
Tomlin wishes to turn he can construct a workforce
Face it when Bill Cowher retired; he had constructed a Superbowl-contending workforce. Then he passed the workforce off to Mike Tomlin. It’s no longer like Tomlin did a lot to stay them serious contenders going ahead. When the Steelers lose one participant, and they are able to’t win, that’s no longer a excellent signal. Plus, Tomlin mismanaged the quarterback state of affairs to 1 level or every other.
Now sooner than blaming Tomlin utterly, the Steelers possession must take their percentage of the blame. The Steelers as a company are miserly and in a similar way treated the quarterback state of affairs. The perception of shielding Tomlin’s season-winning streak comes into play right here.
The Steelers needed to exchange Roethlisberger, so what did they do? Instead of taking a gamble on pursuing a business for Rodgers or Mayfield, signing any of the standard unfastened brokers, they take the most cost effective route to be had to them. The Steelers infrequently make a gutsy gamble. They discovered the worst quarterback in the marketplace, signed him at the affordable, after which doubled down on drafting a quarterback. In truth, they will have to have both pursued a high quality unfastened agent or long gone with the rookie Pickett.
They may just have a minimum of were given a lineman within the draft, a cornerback, or protection, and waited till 2023 to draft a quarterback. No, they didn’t do any of that; god forbid they fear about Tomlin’s profitable streak over profitable a identify. Yet, that’s Steelers possession for you.
Then Tomlin, the defensive guru, has a protection by which one participant is lacking, T.J.Watt, and the workforce loses that week. Look at Buffalo. How many gamers have they misplaced defensively, and but it does no longer subject; they nonetheless steamroll everybody. Buffalo did the unpopular factor of older gamers letting them get extra gifted more youthful gamers in a team-building effort. Cowher gave Tomlin, and it has gotten steadily worse since 2011, and he has no longer completed a lot so as to add sufficient ability to stay them Superbowl Contenders. Keep in thoughts that this isn’t completely a Mike Tomlin factor.
In hindsight, a few of his draft possible choices have been a bit questionable. Yet a few of that blame falls on Kevin Colbert. He made only a few trades mad draft possible choices designed to give protection to Tomlin’s profitable streak fairly than construct a Steelers workforce that may make Superbowl runs every season. Tomlin, in some capability, must remake the Steelers in his symbol with the intention to step out of Cowher’s shadow and in point of fact make the Steelers his workforce.
Until he can do this, his ability as a head coach wishes re-evaluating by means of the Rooneys as to his long term as head coach. Otherwise, Steelers lovers shall be echoing the sentiment of Vince Lombardi “What the h**l’s going on out here, everybody grabbing out there nobody tackling. Just grabbing everybody. Grab, grab, grab”.
Now other people will argue about whom you’ll exchange him with; there are few to be had choices. Yet that’s true. Yet the secret is profitable titles, and if anyone else can construct a awesome workforce to win titles, then possibly the route the Rooney circle of relatives wishes to head.