The Pittsburgh Steelers suffered an ignominious defeat at the hands of the Cleveland Browns last week in the Wild Card round of the NFL Playoffs. Soon thereafter, the team’s offensive coordinator was let go, and on Saturday it was announced who would take his place:
The #Steelers are expected to promote QB coach Matt Canada to offensive coordinator, sources tell me and @TomPelissero. A creative mind originally from the college game, Canada also interviewed with the #Dolphins but now stays in Pittsburgh.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 16, 2021
As you can see, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reported that Matt Canada would be promoted in-house from being the team’s quarterbacks coach to its overall offensive coordinator.
This announcement comes on the heels of the Steelers firing three former coaches, including Canada’s predecessor Randy Fichtner.
Canada’s first head coaching gig came in the college ranks, where he led the Maryland Terrapins football team to a 5-7 record in 2018. Following that role, he was hired by the Steelers along with the three coaches who were fired last week.
One major question mark for the Steelers going into next season is the status of longtime franchise talisman and starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Roethlisberger is planning to return to action in 2021:
“… after this season, which has taken a physical toll on him, sources around Roethlisberger believe the two-time Super Bowl champion is having too much fun and likes his team too much to walk away from it after the 2020 season.”
Who knows if the hiring of Canada as OC will change Roethlisberger’s mind one way or another. The Steelers were a bottom-half offense last season despite Big Ben being third in both passes attempted and completed and nearing a career-high in touchdowns with 33.
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