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The NFL offseason hasn’t even technically begun with the Super Bowl still to be played, but the Pittsburgh Steelers have been busy. After another disappointing late-season collapse, head coach Mike Tomlin is making wholesale changes to his coaching staff. Most notable so far has been the promotion of Matt Canada to offensive coordinator, but it might not be the most significant.
The Steelers still need to hire both an offensive line coach and a quarterbacks coach. Given the fact that both positions are due for a major makeover, these selections could be more impactful than any other move the Steelers make this offseason.
Canada, last season’s quarterbacks coach, is taking his innovative offensive philosophy and hopefully injecting some energy and creativity into the offense. But for the new quarterbacks coach, it is going to be all about evaluating the passers on the roster behind Ben Roethlisberger and grooming a player to carry this team into the future.
Pittsburgh’s offensive line is something of a mixed bag. There is some nice young talent on the roster such as guard Kevin Dotson and offensive tackles Zach Banner and Chuks Okorafor, but age is catching up to the rest of this group.
We don’t know what free agency will bring for guys like Alejandro Villanueva and Matt Feiler, but you can rest assured the draft will include at least one offensive line pick and probably more. Shaun Sarrett wasn’t offered a new contract because he couldn’t coach up the young guys and couldn’t inspire the veterans. His replacement needs to figure out if the young players can contribute and if not trust the front office to bring in some replacements.
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