It was pretty obvious to everyone that wasn’t Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin that the writing was on the wall. Standing at 6-4, there’s no way the Steelers could let this continue, even if the franchise is known for hardly ever making in-season coaching changes.
But after another lackluster offensive performance, one which saw the Steelers lose 13-10 to a team with a rookie backup quarterback, the noise grew insurmountable. On Tuesday, the Steelers elected to fire offensive coordinator Matt Canada, according to multiple reports.
“Matt Canada has been relieved of his duties as offensive coordinator,” Tomlin wrote in a statement, via NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport. “I appreciate Matt’s hard work and dedication, and I wish him the best moving forward in his career.”
The move was a long time coming and one that many in the NFL world didn’t think the team had in them. The 51-year-old Canada, a longtime offensive coordinator at the college level, was in his third season as Pittsburgh’s offensive coordinator.
The team’s offensive woes aren’t new. They were apparent to everyone outside the building last year and bled into the first 10 games of the 2023 NFL season.
At the time of Canada’s firing, Pittsburgh’s offense ranked 28th in points per game (16.6), 28th in yards per game (280.1), and 31st in passing yards per game (170) this season. Despite being 6-4, they somehow have been outgained in every game, which seems improbable but is somehow the cold hard truth.
As news of Canada’s firing was made public on Tuesday, many took to social media to weigh in on the matter.
Whaaaaaaat the Steelers don’t do these kind of things https://t.co/0eCnjwnvxr
— fivepointsvids (@FivePointsVids) November 21, 2023
Again, this is not a defense of Matt Canada's scheme, but the Steelers have played the hardest schedule of opposing defenses in the NFL. For a full year, it would be the 3rd-toughest schedule of opp. defenses since 1981.
I'm writing more about the Steelers offense later today. https://t.co/l4O2fVpVtt
— Aaron Schatz 🏈 (@ASchatzNFL) November 21, 2023
Pittsburgh hardly ever makes in season coaching changes, Mike Tomlin clearly didn't have a choice https://t.co/d3lQZg9Qwq
— Mike Tannenbaum (@RealTannenbaum) November 21, 2023
HOLY SHIT…. What a day for Steelers Nation "Steelers Nation." Those words should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore. We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps it's fate that this week is Thanksgiving and we will… https://t.co/6ja1opx30B
— Tone Digs (@ToneDigz) November 21, 2023
Steelers coaches fired following a loss to the Browns. Oh how the turn tables. https://t.co/NO1mWL6byz
— Jake Burns (@jake_burns18) November 21, 2023
Someday, there will be documentary work done on how a con man OC convinced one of the longest-tenured, sharpest head coaches that he was the guy for nearly 3 full years of utter disaster.
But for now, we'll just be happy this football nightmare is over. https://t.co/MsQE5Zigxr
— Jon Ledyard (@LedyardNFLDraft) November 21, 2023
Another departure for football’s great fraudster pic.twitter.com/kmDMnYs65V https://t.co/YIMSuz27aZ
— Ollie Connolly (@OllieConnolly) November 21, 2023
The Steelers have been out-gained in every single game this season. https://t.co/fUINK51OMd
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) November 21, 2023
Accountability. Pay attention Bears. https://t.co/FYlnFTlVet
— David Kaplan (@thekapman) November 21, 2023
HERE WE GO STEELERS HERE WE GO 🤟🏼 https://t.co/EboVoGNKG6
— Nick Maraldo (@nickmaraldo) November 21, 2023
What are we supposed to chant now? https://t.co/iROGCbKPRU
— Football (@BostonConnr) November 21, 2023
[Tom Pelissero, Adam Schefter]
