Steelers add Panthers offensive lineman Thomas Brown as a possible successor to Matt Canada
Head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mike Tomlin, is aware that his group’s offense requires revitalization. air coming from the Steelers’ external stadium. He moved closer to reaching that objective on Wednesday.
According to the team’s X (previously Twitter) account, the Steelers verified that they conducted interviews with Thomas Brown, the offensive coordinator for the Carolina Panthers, for the same position. Midseason, Pittsburgh fired former offensive coordinator Matt Canada because the team’s chances of making the playoffs were in jeopardy due to offensive problems.
Although second-year quarterback Kenny Pickett was widely expected to lead the Steelers to greater success, the team’s offense was among the least effective in the NFL this year.
Pittsburgh ranked as the team with the fifth fewest points in the league. In terms of passing yards per game and total yards per game, its offense was ranked eighth.
Despite having a strong group of playmakers around him, Pickett did not advance in his first full season as the team’s starting quarterback. Due to injuries, he only appeared in 12 games, but the outcomes weren’t great when he did. Out of all qualifiers, his season QBR of 38.4 ranked 27th; the only players with worse QBRs were Mac Jones, Bryce Young, and Zach Wilson.
On November 21, after a 13–10 loss to the Cleveland Browns in which quarterback Brett Favre completed just 28 passes for 106 yards, Canada was released.
For the Steelers, what would Brown bring?
Brown has gained popularity in the NFL and has already conducted two interviews for the position of head coach with the Tennessee Titans. He’s also been connected to the unfilled coordinator position with the Chicago Bears.
The offense was at the bottom of almost every significant offensive statistic, and Carolina was one of four teams to score fewer points per game than the Steelers.
During the season, Brown assumed play-calling responsibilities after head coach Frank Reich relinquished them in an attempt to shake up the offense. But after three games, Reich took them back in a desperate attempt to keep his job. After Reich was fired, Brown resumed calling plays for the rest of the campaign.
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The Miami Heat had an incredible postseason run that ended after one season. The Heat, led by Jimmy Butler, made it to the 2023 NBA Finals but were defeated by Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. Shaquille O’Neal and Dwyane Wade led Miami at one point. Pat Riley considers the 2004 decision to sign Shaq in 2024.
In 2004, Pat Riley had to give up a lot to get Shaq on the Heat.
Riley discussed the difficulties of trading for Shaquille O’Neal in a podcast with Dwyane Wade many years ago. The veteran Heat executive was unwilling to part with any of his roster’s important players. However, he considered the trade to be a necessary sacrifice.
“I told you Shaq had at least three more years left in him when he entered the market. Additionally, I stated that Dwyane deserved it. In an interview with “The Why with Dwayne Wade,” an iHeartPodcast co-production with Wade’s 59th & Prairie Entertainment, Riley said, “I hated to give up Caron [Butler], [Lamar] Odom, and Brian Grant [but they] had to go because of the money.”
In addition, Riley expressed his regretful feelings about the trade in response to Wade’s question about how frequently executives find themselves in such circumstances.
Yes, I detested that exchange. In addition, was it sheer desperation—after all these years and Winston’s 88—that made me require a title? And I exclaimed, “You know what? I have roughly a year left in me. I’m going to give it my all,” Riley declared.
