Ryan Clark calls for firing of Steelers OC Matt Canada
Former Steelers great Ryan Clark has seen enough of Matt Canada. After Pittsburgh’s offense struggled again this past weekend against the Texans, the former NFL star-turned-analyst wants to franchise to move on from the offensive coordinator.
During ESPN’s Get Up on Monday, Clark ripped into Canada, saying he wants to see Mike Tomlin make a major change. The experiment, in his mind, should be over.
“Stop bumping your head up against the Matthew Canada wall. Send him back wherever you want to send him,” Clark said. “Send him back to Pitt. Hell, I’d even take him back at LSU if he could coach defense because our offense does well. It is sickening what you saw yesterday from the Pittsburgh Steelers and I expect wholesale changes.”
Clark’s comments come after Pittsburgh’s embarrassing 30-6 loss to Houston on Sunday. It’s the second time the team has been blown out, also losing 30-7 to the 49ers to open the 2023 season.
The Steelers did get wins over the Browns and Raiders in weeks 2 and 3, but the offense has continued to be an area of concern. Following Sunday’s loss, Tomlin emphatically said changes would be coming.
“Hell yeah there’s going to be changes,” Tomlin said, per Brooke Pryor of ESPN.
Tomlin didn’t really clarify, but many speculated that could be the end of Canada’s run as the team’s offensive coordinator. But that wasn’t specifically stated.
Canada is in his third season as the team’s offensive coordinator and fourth year in Pittsburgh. He joined the staff as the quarterbacks coach in 2020 then took over play-calling duties in 2021.
Steelers recently gave Matt Canada more prominent role
Just a few days ago, the Steelers decided to give Canada a more prominent role. The goal was to develop a better connection with quarterback Kenny Pickett.
“Canada will continue calling plays, but will also be working directly with Pickett on a daily basis,” NFL insider Jordan Schultz wrote on Twitter. “The 51-year-old was hired in 2020 as QBs coach, and then promoted to coordinator prior to the 2021 season. Pittsburgh believes in Canada and they anticipate this making a big difference.”
After Pittsburgh’s Week 2 win over the Cleveland Browns, Canada seemed to understand the offense wasn’t performing well enough. But he admitted there’s really no quick answer.
“We’re not executing well enough,” Canada said ahead of Week 3 against the Las Vegas Raiders, via the team’s website. “If a play doesn’t work, it’s all of us, we gotta fix it. We’re gonna keep going and we’ll continue to fight and see if we can get those completions better, the runs better, all of it.
“Every facet of our game could be a little bit better. There’s no magical answer to this, I don’t believe, other than I’m very proud and excited about where our players are at with it. There’s nobody pointing fingers… Nobody throwing in the towel.”
Pittsburgh hosts the Ravens next Sunday in an AFC North matchup.