Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin told reporters on Tuesday that he wasn’t happy with the team’s offensive production in 2021, but that he’s optimistic about what the future holds for offensive coordinator Matt Canada.
There could be a change with the coach in charge of things on the other side of the ball, however. Tomlin said that defensive coordinator Keith Butler “has had conversations about this potentially being his last year,” but that no final determination about his status has been made because the coaches have been doing exit interviews with players.
Whether Butler or someone else is running the defense, Tomlin said things have to be better in 2022.
“Defensively, we didn’t play as well as we’d like,” Tomlin said, via Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “We have to get better in that area. You can talk about player availability or lack thereof. You can seek comfort. I don’t. We don’t. All we have is what’s on tape and our record. We need to be better. I’m not comfortable with what we did against the run. I don’t think any of us are. That needs to improve. It will improve. We’ll plot a course to do so.”
Butler joined the Steelers as linebackers coach in 2003 and moved to his current role in 2015. Secondary coach Teryl Austin is seen as the top in-house candidate to replace him.
