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Brooke Pryor, ESPN Staff Writer
PITTSBURGH — The Steelers are expected to hire former Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith as their next offensive coordinator, league sources confirmed to ESPN.
“We’re looking forward to have someone come in and take a fresh approach who can help our young players grow and perform and have the offense perform at a consistently high level,” Steelers owner Art Rooney II said Monday about an impending hire at the position, saying the hire would be made sooner rather than later.
Smith was fired by the Falcons earlier this month after compiling a 21-30 record in three consecutive 7-10 seasons without a playoff berth. Before his stint in Atlanta, Smith was the Tennessee Titans‘ offensive coordinator from 2019-20. Smith initially joined the Tennessee staff in 2011 as a defensive quality control coach and also worked as an offensive quality control coach, offensive line coach, assistant tight ends coach and tight ends coach before his promotion to offensive coordinator.
“I think Mike identified we want somebody that has some experience, and somebody that has, let’s say, a track record that we can look at and feel comfortable with,” Rooney II said Monday describing what coach Mike Tomlin is looking for in an O-coordinator.
Smith’s Falcons offense was inconsistent and often earned criticism in Atlanta for his usage of running back Bijan Robinson and tight end Kyle Pitts and management of the quarterback situation. Smith and the Falcons selected quarterback Desmond Ridder two rounds after the Steelers selected quarterback Kenny Pickett in the 2022 draft. Ridder became the starter in 2023 after starting four games as a rookie, but he was benched twice this season, throwing 12 touchdowns to 12 interceptions.
Smith, though, has experience running an offense with a strong rushing attack. The Falcons had the third-most rushing yards in 2022, and in Smith’s final season in Tennessee, the Titans were second in rushing yards.
On Monday, Steelers owner Art Rooney II expressed a desire to return to a ground attack and to improve the quality of quarterback play and development of Pickett.
“I think we have two high performing running backs and Najee [Harris] and Jaylen [Warren] and they, along with an improving offensive line can be the foundation of success going forward,” Rooney II said.
With that running back tandem, the Steelers rushed for 2,010 yards in the regular season, including a late surge of two 100-yard rushing games by Harris in the last two regular-season games.
“I think we have an idea of what we want the Steeler offense to look like,” Rooney II said Monday. “Start with that and we have a certain roster mix that leads to, you can’t completely change your roster overnight, so you kind of have to have a coordinator that feels like they can work with this roster and be successful with it. So, somebody that believes in that and comes in and can work with this roster, do what’s kind of already built here in terms of the roster and some of the skill sets that we have. I think that’s what we’re looking for.”