Coaching Changes

[SteelBucks]

If Canada is an RPO guy then he was a bad hire from the start, because Ben isn't running an RPO, GTO, GMO, WHO or any kind of "O" offense that involves him using his legs. I just hated the offense so much this year (even when they were successful, it felt like the offense labored) I'd like to see them all gone. Canada may be a great OC some day or he may not, I'd prefer Marrone at this point, a proven commodity that likes to run the football. The Steelers won't do jack crap until they can run the ball for 1 or 2 yards when they need it. Third and short was a nightmare scenario for this team, the defenses knew they couldn't run the ball and sat on all the short passing lanes, that can't be.

Pappy

The one thing they proved is they can’t run the ball with this crew. They’ll need to clean house on the OL to have any success on the ground. I’m not putting their failures on Canada.

[Steel Maniac]

The one thing they proved is they can’t run the ball with this crew. They’ll need to clean house on the OL to have any success on the ground. I’m not putting their failures on Canada.

Your spot on; they better figure out a way to run the ball because being one dimensional has a short shelf life. As we saw.

[papillon]

The one thing they proved is they can’t run the ball with this crew. They’ll need to clean house on the OL to have any success on the ground. I’m not putting their failures on Canada.

I'm not blaming him at all, but he isn't the guy for the job as an RPO offensive mind. They need an OC that will let Ben and to lesser degree Rudolph be successful and what both of those guys do is throw the ball downfield. The short underneath stuff has to be their safety valve or 3rd or 4th read, not the primary read. It was sickening to watch a 2 yard pass on 3rd and 3. Handcuffing Ben in the manner that happened this year should have had Fichtner fired mid-season, imo. If it was obvious to a casual football guy like me, it had to be apparent to anyone associated with the game on an NFL level. You're right, this Oline group can't run the football so that needs to be corrected first. I'm okay with giving Canada a chance but I would prefer someone that thinks more like Ben so that they're always on the same page. I'm not certain Fichtner and Ben were ever on the same page this year.

Pappy

[NorthCoast]

The Depot lists six guys as OC candidates....besides Canada, Hamilton or Gruden could be interesting as OCs.

[Northern_Blitz]

I'm not blaming him at all, but he isn't the guy for the job as an RPO offensive mind. They need an OC that will let Ben and to lesser degree Rudolph be successful and what both of those guys do is throw the ball downfield. The short underneath stuff has to be their safety valve or 3rd or 4th read, not the primary read. It was sickening to watch a 2 yard pass on 3rd and 3. Handcuffing Ben in the manner that happened this year should have had Fichtner fired mid-season, imo. If it was obvious to a casual football guy like me, it had to be apparent to anyone associated with the game on an NFL level. You're right, this Oline group can't run the football so that needs to be corrected first. I'm okay with giving Canada a chance but I would prefer someone that thinks more like Ben so that they're always on the same page. I'm not certain Fichtner and Ben were ever on the same page this year.

Pappy

Pappy, I think it's hard to believe that Ben was "handcuffed" by the OC he personally picked into running an offense he didn't like.

I think we ran the short pass, run game alternative offense because that's what Ben wanted to do.

And I think he earned that kind of control after the career he's had.

But I think it ultimately didn't work because we didn't pose enough of a threat running or throwing deep. And teams just sat on short routes. And it didn't seem like Ben could successfully run the only short pass offense once the rest of the league saw what we were doing (maybe no one is).

[NorthCoast]

Pappy, I think it's hard to believe that Ben was "handcuffed" by the OC he personally picked into running an offense he didn't like.

I think we ran the short pass, run game alternative offense because that's what Ben wanted to do.

And I think he earned that kind of control after the career he's had.

But I think it ultimately didn't work because we didn't pose enough of a threat running or throwing deep. And teams just sat on short routes. And it didn't seem like Ben could successfully run the only short pass offense once the rest of the league saw what we were doing (maybe no one is).

100% there. The QB had what he wanted when the season started. Problem is he didn't know what to do after defenses figured him out.

[whatever]

I have never been crazy about Butler. But it looks like he is staying

Statistically, butler should be one of the last ones fired the last couple seasons. Of course he was loaded with talent. I’ll be curious to see how much of this team they can keep together.

[Oviedo]

If Canada is an RPO guy then he was a bad hire from the start, because Ben isn't running an RPO, GTO, GMO, WHO or any kind of "O" offense that involves him using his legs. I just hated the offense so much this year (even when they were successful, it felt like the offense labored) I'd like to see them all gone. Canada may be a great OC some day or he may not, I'd prefer Marrone at this point, a proven commodity that likes to run the football. The Steelers won't do jack crap until they can run the ball for 1 or 2 yards when they need it. Third and short was a nightmare scenario for this team, the defenses knew they couldn't run the ball and sat on all the short passing lanes, that can't be.

Pappy

I'll say it again. Canada was brought here to develop Mason not for Ben

That is why we should hire him as OC and move on from Ben.

[whatever]

I'll say it again. Canada was brought here to develop Mason not for Ben

That is why we should hire him as OC and move on from Ben.

I don’t see Rudolph being a rpo qb.
I could see them grooming him for a few years until they get that running qb that fits the rpo scheme.

[SteelBucks]

I'm not blaming him at all, but he isn't the guy for the job as an RPO offensive mind. They need an OC that will let Ben and to lesser degree Rudolph be successful and what both of those guys do is throw the ball downfield. The short underneath stuff has to be their safety valve or 3rd or 4th read, not the primary read. It was sickening to watch a 2 yard pass on 3rd and 3. Handcuffing Ben in the manner that happened this year should have had Fichtner fired mid-season, imo. If it was obvious to a casual football guy like me, it had to be apparent to anyone associated with the game on an NFL level. You're right, this Oline group can't run the football so that needs to be corrected first. I'm okay with giving Canada a chance but I would prefer someone that thinks more like Ben so that they're always on the same page. I'm not certain Fichtner and Ben were ever on the same page this year.

Pappy

I agree. It was painful to watch. I’ve never seen an offense get worse as the season progressed. They basically peaked during the Eagles game and it was downhill from there.

[Buzz]

I agree. It was painful to watch. I’ve never seen an offense get worse as the season progressed. They basically peaked during the Eagles game and it was downhill from there.

Both offense and defense declined as the season went on. Offense first, followed by the D. Some of that was due to injuries and player decline, and some was due to a coaching staff that can't adequately adjust to the changes opponents make throughout the season.

[Northern_Blitz]

Both offense and defense declined as the season went on. Offense first, followed by the D. Some of that was due to injuries and player decline, and some was due to a coaching staff that can't adequately adjust to the changes opponents make throughout the season.

This is another thing I'm confused about this season.

Why were we so bad out of the gate on games? This kind of implies that we had bad game plans

But we'd usually play much better on the servant half. Implying good adjustments.

It is all coaching, why would we be bad at planning when we have time, but good at planning when we don't have time?

[steeler_george]

This is another thing I'm confused about this season.

Why were we so bad out of the gate on games? This kind of implies that we had bad game plans

But we'd usually play much better on the servant half. Implying good adjustments.

It is all coaching, why would we be bad at planning when we have time, but good at planning when we don't have time?

That is what killed me about Fitchner, it seemed he had no idea how to game plan. How to attack weakness of the opposing defense. Just line them up and let Ben win it... And on first drives, normally all the 1st 5 plays are scripted pregame... so can't blame Ben for auditing out.

[steeler_george]

I hope the new OC plays like a SF offense, lots of motion and strong running game.

[BURGH86STEEL]

This is another thing I'm confused about this season.

Why were we so bad out of the gate on games? This kind of implies that we had bad game plans

But we'd usually play much better on the servant half. Implying good adjustments.

It is all coaching, why would we be bad at planning when we have time, but good at planning when we don't have time?

Ben was a slow starter this year. The WRs dropped some passes that killed opportunities to extend drives. It's going to be Ben's offense as long as he's the QB. I am not sure which road the organization will go down at this point.

Should they pay Ben for one last season where they probably won't get consistent quality play? Should bite the bullet, revamp the offense, attempt to build a strong run game, and see what they have in Mason?