Steelers fire offensive coordinator Matt Canada after loss to Browns: Why now?

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The Pittsburgh Steelers fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada following Sunday’s 13-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns.

Coach Mike Tomlin said he “did not come to this decision lightly” in a Tuesday news conference.

“This is a results-oriented business,” Tomlin said. “To be short, the improvements were not rapid enough or consistent enough for us to proceed. … You have to score touchdowns in this business.”

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The Steelers’ offense ranks 28th in the NFL in yards per game and points per game.

Tomlin said running backs coach Eddie Faulkner will coordinate the offense, and quarterbacks coach Mike Sullivan will call the “bulk” of the plays.

Pittsburgh had a slow day offensively against Cleveland and didn’t score until the third quarter, when running back Jaylen Warren had a 74-yard touchdown run just 50 seconds into the second half. Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett only threw for 106 yards and no touchdowns in the loss. The second-year quarterback has just one touchdown pass in his last five games.

With the loss, the Steelers fell to 6-4 and fell behind the AFC North rival Browns (7-3). Pittsburgh is clinging to a wild-card spot, a half-game ahead of the Buffalo Bills (6-5) entering a Week 12 game at the Cincinnati Bengals.

Ahead of Week 9, Tomlin moved Canada from the booth to the field to join Sullivan on the sideline. Pickett said the move “definitely was a positive” after the Steelers’ 20-16 victory over the Tennessee Titans that week. Pittsburgh followed with a 23-19 win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 10 but then fell to the Browns on Sunday.

Rumors over Canada’s job security in Pittsburgh began circulating last season following questionable play calling and predictability. In 13 of 17 games, the Steelers gained more than 300 yards, but they scored 30 points only once and at least 20 points just eight times last season.

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This season marked Canada’s third as offensive coordinator after the team promoted him from quarterbacks coach in January 2021. He joined the Steelers in 2019 after spending his entire coaching career in the college ranks, with stops at NC State, Pitt, Wisconsin, LSU, Maryland and more.

Why fire Canada now?

The Steelers have been going about their business differently lately with new general manager Omar Khan. Now that’s trickled down to the coaching staff. The Steelers never fire coaches midseason, which makes Canada’s departure somewhat surprising even though his offense has ranked in the bottom half of the league since he took over two years ago.

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This move screams of coming from the top with Art Rooney II. Rooney has had a hands-on approach with coordinators in the past, dismissing Bruce Arians and hiring Todd Haley. — Mark Kaboly, Steelers senior writer

What the move says about Kenny Pickett

With so much invested in Pickett and his lack of taking a step forward this year, the Steelers had two choices — move on from Canada or bench Pickett. This move pretty much assures the Steelers still have hope that Pickett is worth the 20th pick in 2022.

This means to me that Pickett is the QB for at least the next two years. The question is, why wasn’t this a move the Steelers made 10 months ago? — Kaboly

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By moving on from Canada, the Steelers took away the main source that’s been protecting Pickett from criticism this season. The second-year quarterback has been one of the most inaccurate and inefficient passers in the league. However, by keeping Canada around, Pickett’s inconsistencies could be blamed on the man calling the plays and designing the offense.

It was hard at times to isolate variables and assign blame to a coordinator who has never proven he can do it at the NFL level and a quarterback who also has never shown he can be a steady NFL passer. With Canada gone, that now goes out the window. Pickett is running out of excuses and will need to deliver if he doesn’t want to be the next person on the way out. — Mike DeFabo, Steelers staff writer

Required reading

(Photo: Philip G. Pavely / USA Today)