The Pittsburgh Steelers had everything going correctly after a 10-3 start to the 2024 regular season. Head Coach Mike Tomlin looked like a genius for sitting down Justin Fields once Russell Wilson was fully healed after an early training camp calf injury. The morale was extremely high in the Steel City, and then the team tumbled down the stretch. The final five games all resulted in losses, which included a defeat at the hands of the Baltimore Ravens in the postseason. This late-season skid has led to an interesting 2025 offseason, as the organization does not currently have a solidified starter with the NFL Draft just two weeks away.
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Steelers Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith speaks with former quarterback Russell Wilson as the team practices at the UPMC Sports Complex in Pittsburgh, PA.
Many were excited when the Steelers hired Arthur Smith after the 2023 campaign to be the franchise's new offensive play-caller. There were some promising moments during his first year in the role, but down the stretch, the offense was very underwhelming. As it turns out, Smith may have been trying to control a little bit too much of what Wilson was doing on the field and in the huddle.
Legendary Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger hosted Pat McAfee on a recent episode of his podcast, Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger, and the future Hall of Famer revealed some inside information that he had heard. It has been reported that Smith and Wilson had a rocky relationship, and the Steelers quarterback for nearly two decades pretty much confirmed why.
"Arthur Smith has to understand that he has to let the quarterback have some rein," Roethlisberger said. "I was told he really pulled the reins back on Russ [Wilson]. In the two-minute drill, wouldn't let Russ call his own plays. You have to let a quarterback do that stuff."
McAfee later agreed saying that he had never heard of that being the case in the NFL when it comes to a Super Bowl-winning signal-caller. The offense had several good games when Wilson took over, including a game in which the team put up 44 points against the Cincinnati Bengals. The most logical explanation is that Smith panicked when things started to go south in December, and then completely changed what Wilson was and wasn't allowed to do.
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Steelers Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith and wide receiver George Pickens share some words with one another as the team practices at the UPMC Sports Complex in Pittsburgh, PA.
It might be understandable if Wilson was a young and inexperienced quarterback, but he is a veteran with a Super Bowl victory. That kind of prowess should give a player a little bit of leeway and rein, but that apparently wasn't the gameplan with Wilson and Smith later on in the season. When a coach on the sidelines tries to control everything that happens on the playing surface, it typically doesn't go well.
This is something that Roethlisberger can speak on from experience. Throughout the majority of his career, he was given permission to run the two-minute drill and go with the flow of the game. Tomlin hasn't truly developed a quarterback in his head-coaching career, which could be why he was okay with Smith pulling back the reins on Wilson, as Roethlisberger noted.
Not having a legitimate long-term solution at arguably the most important position in all of sports is clearly hurting the Steelers. No one is quite sure who that guy will be, but at some point, Smith is going to need to allow the signal-caller to run the show for a drive, or at least multiple plays throughout the course of any given matchup.
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Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin shakes hands with former New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers after a game as quarterback Russell Wilson looks on in the background.
Steelers Won't Have A Choice But To Let Aaron Rodgers Be Spontaneous Whenever He Wants
If Aaron Rodgers decides to sign in Pittsburgh, the coaching staff better understand that he won't take it well if he is forced to play conservative football in select situations. He has been a professional football player for two decades and deserves the opportunity to go out on a whim if he is under center in the Steel City. That could have been part of the conversation when the four-time MVP visited with the Steelers' brass.
Do you think that Smith is partially at fault for the late-season collapse in 2024? Let us know in the comments below!
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