It's no secret that the Pittsburgh Steelers' offense has been at the bottom of the league through the first three weeks of the NFL season. Calls for major changes have been countless. Ranging from the firing of offensive coordinator Matt Canada to the benching of starting quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, it's endless. It's very easy to overreact and believe the sky is falling if you've been watching this team through the first month of the season, but below I will discuss why starting rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett won't solve all their problems.
Steelers Kenny Pickett warms up for his first ever NFL action against the Seattle Seahawks on 8/13 / Credit: Jordan Schofield/SteelerNation (@JSKO_PHOTO Twitter)
The Steelers knew coming into the offseason that there was going to be a philosophical change on offense, or at least that's what they told everyone. Canada and the Steelers brass had clamored for months during the 2021 season and the 2022 offseason that Canada needed a mobile quarterback to properly run his offense.
The Steelers created the impression last year that 18-year veteran Ben Roethlisberger was unable to properly run their offense which is why the game plan never seemed to change and appeared to be very vanilla. The offensive line was constantly blamed for not creating running lanes and for their inability to protect Roethlisberger. The Steelers were in the bottom half of the league in yards per rush attempt, as well as the quickest team in the league from snap to pass.
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So, what did the Steelers do in the offseason? Well, they went on a spending spree. Reports swirled that Roethlisberger was forced into retirement in order for a new, mobile quarterback to take over the team. They bolstered their lackluster offensive line by spending over $50 million in free agency and signed a true dual-threat quarterback in the aforementioned Trubisky. They also drafted first-round pick, Pickett out of the University of Pittsburgh. The front office and head coach did their part in fixing what the perceived problem was in the 2021 season, but the product on the field looks eerily similar to last year.
The quick answer is the offense has not changed and there's no one else to blame except for Canada. Pittsburgh tailored their offseason to getting pieces in Canada's offense that would allow him to flourish and revamp the unit. However, the offense is even worse than it was last year. Trubisky, the running quarterback that Canada clearly wanted, has run the ball a total of six times for 23 yards in three games. The offensive line has shown noticeable improvement, but the black and gold are only rushing the ball less than 20 times per game.
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Canada clearly is in over his head and fooled Pittsburgh into thinking he knew what he was doing. The worst thing Canada could do in his limited time left in Pittsburgh is bringing their rookie quarterback Pickett down with him. The offense is not in a position that would allow for the growth and development of a quarterback.
Is Pickett more talented than Trubisky? Would he provide the Steelers a better chance at victory on any given Sunday? Yes, but under these circumstances, the argument couldn't hold water. The Steelers' signal caller on offense won't make a difference in the outcome of the 2022 season. Unless the person calling the plays and installing the offense changes, then the offense will remain stagnant and unexcitable.
There's no reason to throw Pickett to the wolves so early in his career in a position that will clearly hinder his growth. If the circumstances were different and Trubisky was the main reason they were losing, then it would be a different answer. However, Trubisky is playing the best he can under the circumstances and a rookie with no NFL experience won't have any more success in this offense.
Pittsburgh likely won't fire Canada mid-season. Too much time and effort were put in during the offseason to completely change their offense during the season. However, when Pittsburgh inevitably moves on from Canada after the season, it will be imperative that they bring in an offensive coordinator that will assist in the development of Pickett because next year it will be his show.
Let us know what you think about Canada's performance thus far in the comments section below!
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