How the Steelers Can Make It Further in the Playoffs Next Year
After another first-round exit for Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers, Steelers fans are calling for major changes. Pittsburgh went into Baltimore and got down 21-0 in the first half. The Ravens won and will now face the Bills on Sunday night. With that loss to Baltimore, the Steelers have lost six consecutive first-round matchups. Fans in Pittsburgh are frustrated and have many different ideas on how to fix the Steelers, this is how Pittsburgh can get over the hump of the first round.
Many Pittsburgh fans are calling for the firing of Mike Tomlin, this is highly unlikely to happen. As long as Tomlin continues to have winning seasons and continues to get into the playoffs, he won’t be going anywhere. As for Arthur Smith and Teryl Austin, let both of them go. Arthur Smith and Russell Wilson reportedly didn’t have a good relationship, raising questions about why they were paired together throughout the season. Smith also recently completed an interview with the Chicago Bears for their head coaching position; the Steelers should let him pursue that opportunity. Danny Smith is the only other coach on the team, that deserves to be a coach for the Steelers.
Offensively, there are several things Pittsburgh could do. First, they should let Wilson go and make Justin Fields the starting quarterback next season. Wilson wants a three-year $30 million contract despite going 6-6 and performing about the same as he did in Denver. Fields deserve a chance to be the starter. The Steelers should also look to draft a quarterback in the early rounds of the draft, someone like Quinn Ewers. The Steelers should keep George Pickens and aim to build around him. Pittsburgh needs at least one more threat at wide receiver, Pickens can’t be the only threat of a target, get a receiver in free agency or draft. With Najee Harris being a free agent, it would be nice to keep him for the right price, however, Jaylen Warren is more than capable of being the starting running back.
Defensively, the Steelers have a ton of talent that did not seem to mesh together this season. A new Defensive Coordinator could be the solution but they need to find a way to work together. Minkah Fitzpatrick had a very disappointing year and it could be time to let him go, then it is about who they replace him with. Cam Heyward continues to be elite defensively however, he is nearing the end of his career and it is unsure how much time he has left. Pittsburgh’s defense specifically Joey Porter Jr. was guilty of multiple holding and Pass Interference calls, this needs to be worked on. The Defense needs to stop giving their opponents free yardage. Overall, the Steelers have many of the right pieces but also have some holes in their offense and defense that need to be addressed over the offseason.
