PITTSBURGH — With any offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers and other NFL teams can expect coaching staff changes, which will likely occur for Pittsburgh again in 2023. Beyond the prominent new offensive coordinator hire, the position coach attrition will come with that, and Mike Tomlin and the team expect that to occur naturally.
“From a coaching perspective, obviously, things never stay the same,” Tomlin said. “I’m appreciative of this collective and what they were willing to do, all the while understanding that there will be changes. I think those of us that are in this business understand that. We’ll thoughtfully and intentionally go about that. Just really at the infancy of that as well in terms of gathering information about outside candidates and what the process of interviewing looks like in 2024.”
There will be highly interesting ideas for the outside hire, but Tomlin is open to moving around the deck. Not only did Tomlin hint that there are changes coming, but when asked if they could add to the offensive staff, Tomlin seemed sure that expansion could occur, too.
“Certainly,” Tomlin said. “I’m looking at all components of staffing as part of the annual end-of-the-season review, and additions in terms of expertise are certainly a component of that.”
Earlier this week, Tomlin detailed the qualities he wants in his next offensive coordinator. That person will be from the outside, experienced, have a quarterback background, and run a diverse scheme that highlights talented players.
“I want us to be versatile and dynamic. Obviously, you know we got to score more points. I want to be able to keep defenses off balance. I want to utilize all the talent we have at our disposal,” Tomlin said. “…I’m excited about this process and the talent pool out there based on what I’ve seen so far. I’m really open to learning through this process and seeing what people have to say about their visions. Certainly, I have a vision of what it looks like, but certainly open to learning through this process.”
Tomlin’s goals are to, obviously, score more points. But he wants the offense to be diverse and effective to their personnel. The Canada move seemed like one that tried to get the Steelers into the modern age but ended up with a faux version of the scheme that coaches like Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, and others utilize.
More than that, the quarterback development needs to be on point. If those traits can be framed into what Tomlin is looking for, it narrows the candidates down significantly, but offers a divergent path from past hires. Naturally, staff changes will occur with that.