Steelers coach Mike Tomlin will get it. He all the time has, he all the time will. It’s one of many causes he’s by no means had a dropping season, and why he’s so revered by his friends.
He is aware of what this sport is about. It’s a enterprise, one which requires the shoppers to be sufficiently motivated to dedicate their cash, time, and emotion to the workforce. And that may generally trigger followers to be upset when issues aren’t going nicely.
On Monday evening, issues positively weren’t going nicely for the Pittsburgh offense. I used to be there. The offense underneath coordinator Matt Canada was sluggish. It had no rhythm, no stream. There was no overriding plan to do one factor early in an effort to arrange one thing else late.
Working again Najee Harris lacked burst. He couldn’t beat defenders to the sting, however they stored working him to the sting. Consecutive lengthy runs within the second half ought to have gone even farther than they did.
Receiver George Pickens continued to face single protection, and it took a very long time earlier than quarterback Kenny Pickett appeared Pickens’s approach early within the development. After a 71-yard catch and run for a rating, it was as if Canada lastly remembered what he has.
It nonetheless wasn’t sufficient. By the fourth quarter, followers have been loudly chanting, “Fireplace Canada.”
Coach Mike Tomlin was requested concerning the show throughout a day-after press convention.
“I appreciate their passion,” Tomlin stated. “I share their ardour. All of us do. Man, we love our followers, man. They encourage us. They problem us. It’s an superior relationship. Man, we don’t run from challenges, we run to challenges. That is the sport-entertainment enterprise. It’s our job to win and thus entertain them. And so we don’t begrudge them for that. We would like them to be fats and sassy and spoiled. It’s our job.”
That job entails scheming performs to take advantage of out of their nice gamers. The Steelers ought to make Pickens the centerpiece of the passing sport. Throw and throw and throw and throw it to him till he’s continually double coated. That may open up the remainder of the offense, for everybody else.
It’s not straightforward, however it’s additionally not rocket science. Generally, it will get overly sophisticated. For Canada, the mandate must be easy.
Use Pickens. Get the ball in his palms, any which approach. Pressure opposing defensive coordinators to spend a lot time attempting to determine how you can cease him that they aren’t able to cease the remainder of the offense.
It’s the easiest way to get probably the most out of the offense. It’s additionally the easiest way to get the followers sufficiently fats, sassy, and spoiled that they aren’t clamoring for Canada to be canned.
