The Pittsburgh Steelers ended their season in familiar fashion, clawing their way to just enough wins to keep head coach Mike Tomlin’s non-losing season streak alive and earning their right to be fodder for a high-seeded AFC competitor.
In 2024, it was the Baltimore Ravens’ turn to send the Steelers home, cruising to a 28-14 win that saw Pittsburgh beaten on the gridiron and whiteboard.
The mental mistakes and schematic flaws in the loss made the loss even harder on fans who had grown used to playoff disappointment but maintained the expectation of a well-coached, physical football team.
When it became clear that the coaching staff would remain nearly identical – particularly at head coach and both coordinator spots – fans grew increasingly irritated. However, there has been some reshuffling at the lower levels of the coaching staff. Grady Brown’s contract was not renewed, promoting Gerald Alexander in his place. Linebackers coach Aaron Curry will take on a similar role with the New York Jets.
Insider Ray Fittipaldo revealed that Tomlin was key to the Steelers’ coaching decisions.
"You gotta trust that Mike Tomlin knows what he's doing here. This was Mike's decision. How many blown coverages did we see late in the season? And actually throughout the season? I mean, you go back to Indianapolis and Dallas, it was an issue that never really got fixed," Fittipaldo said via the Post-Gazette (first transcribed by Steelers Depot). "And really, I don't know this for sure, only Mike will be able to address this the next time we talk to him, but Aaron Curry was part of that, too, Patrick Queen was the hub of the defense. The communication between the second and third levels, the defense really were off all season.
"So, I don't know if both those guys were scapegoated, but it certainly seems like those issues that were ongoing throughout the season that were never fixed, it looks like it cost Grady and Aaron Curry both of their jobs.”
Much of Pittsburgh’s late-season slide can be attributed to a lack of cohesion on the back end. It drew somewhat controversial comments from veteran defenders (some of which were walked back). Those issues, to an extent, were a reflection of a coaching staff that oversaw its talent fall short of expectations.
Thus, it’s no surprise Tomlin attempted to address the issue, or that he was the one making the call.
"When you put it together, who are the two units that played most off-ball coverage on the Steelers that led to those problems? And it was the linebackers and the defensive backs. And so maybe that was part of it. Mike Tomlin said he was gonna do a year-end review and they were gonna assess what went wrong in the tail end of the season," Fittipaldo said.
"Maybe this is telling us what the Steelers found when they were looking over the whys and the hows at the end of the season as far as why things fell apart, especially on defense."
Despite Pittsburgh’s hot start to the season, the defense ranked 16th in expected points added per play and 26th in success rate after the Week 10 bye. Between an uptick in opponent difficulty and degradation in the back seven, the Steelers couldn’t find the answers to salvage the unit and keep the offense afloat as it, too, struggles down the stretch.
While it’s not nothing, the Pittsburgh faithful have largely remained unimpressed with the lack of large-scale changes after another stagnant season. Little new blood to speak of won’t change that impression.
