The Pittsburgh Steelers are revered by their fans for a certain way of doing business. Art Rooney hired Chuck Noll in 1969 and they slowly turned around a nearly 40-year history of failure, four seasons later they won a division title and the first playoff game in team history. Since 1972 the Steelers have only had nine losing seasons in 50 years and they have won six Lombardi Trophies in eight tries. The Steeler way is envied as a model others can only aspire to reach.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JANUARY 01: Head coach Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers looks on during an NFL football game between the Baltimore Ravens and the Pittsburgh Steelers at M&T Bank Stadium on January 01, 2023, in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Michael Owens/Getty Images)
Pittsburgh has only had three head coaches during these 50 years and the unprecedented stability has been held up as the way Pittsburgh does business. The current Head Coach Mike Tomlin, repeats the mantra that the 'standard is the standard' every chance he gets. Wednesday on The PM Team/w Poni & Mueller, CBS reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala questioned openly if keeping Matt Canada was the Steeler Way.
“When Dan Rooney was in charge,” Kinkhabwala began. “The Steelers’ way was to tell Chuck Noll you need to move on from four assistant coaches.”
Detroit, UNITED STATES: Pittsburgh Steelers team owner Dan Rooney holds the Vince Lombardi trophy after his team won Super Bowl XL, 21-10 against the Seattle Seahawks 05 February 2006 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. AFP PHOTO/JEFF HAYNES (Photo credit should read JEFF HAYNES/AFP via Getty Images)
Dan Rooney is probably the one man most responsible for the way the franchise operates and he did not tolerate long-term failure. He was heavily involved with building the Steelers of the 1970s, but he didn’t romanticize the period. When Noll missed the playoffs for four consecutive seasons, he forced the legendary coach to purge his staff and start over. Noll could have resisted the direction by resigning himself, but he didn’t, and the Steelers returned to the playoffs immediately.
“When Dan Rooney was in charge,” the CBS reporter continued. “The Steelers’ way was to say as much as Bruce Arians was beloved, we need to prolong Ben Roethlisberger’s career and you need to move on from Bruce Arians.”
Bruce Arians was the only coach under Tomlin that went on to be a head coach. He got his first opportunity in Indianapolis when Chuck Pagano was diagnosed with cancer and had a wildly successful run with the Colts. Arians is popular with his players and led the Arizona Cardinals to the NFC Championship game and won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Ben Roethlisberger dearly loved playing for him, but Rooney stepped in and forced a change to prolong his franchise quarterback’s career.
“The Steelers’ way at one point was indeed to allow for change,” Kinkhabwala concluded. “When the change was necessary.”
The Steelers have not replaced an assistant coach who was under contract since Kevin Gilbride was replaced by Mike Mularkey in the year 2000. Pittsburgh since that period has allowed coaches to complete their tenure and then move on as quietly as possible. Roethlisberger’s performance on offense masked a lot of questionable coaching during his tenure as the leader of the black and gold.
It is worth wondering if Roethlisberger himself would have traded the last decade of his career for another ring or two with Arians as his play-caller. He might have retired five years ago because of the beating he would have taken, but it is a question worth asking.
Kenny Pickett is not as physically gifted as Roethlisberger and will not be able to overcome any shortfalls in the coaching staff easily. Pickett has demonstrated that for a drive as a rookie, he could improvise but his predecessor was the master of ‘backyard’ football and has been widely credited for drawing plays in the dirt when he didn’t like the play call. Pickett is entering his second year and doesn’t have the cache to resort to that style of play.
BALTIMORE, MD - DECEMBER 27, 2015: Team owner Art Rooney II of the Pittsburgh Steelers walks out of the tunnel prior to a game against the Baltimore Ravens at M&T Bank Stadium on December 27, 2015, in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by: 2015 Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images)
Art Rooney II has not imposed his will on the organization as his father did, content to let his football people take the credit and blame for the success of the franchise. The standard has evolved over the last decade under new leadership to .500 football and embarrassing playoff losses. It will take a strong hand to remind the organization that playoff success and championships are all that matter in Pittsburgh.
In short, it will take a return to do business the Steeler way.
What do you think Steeler Nation? Do you feel like keeping Canada was a mistake that the organization wouldn’t have made a decade ago? Please comment below or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.
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