Is it time for Steelers to ‘clean house’ with their coaching staff?

The Steelers are off to a disappointing 0-3 start to the season. Is it time for Pittsburgh to ‘clean house’ with its coaching staff?

The Steelers have been one of the most winning teams in the NFL since Mike Tomlin took over as the head coach back in 2007. Tomlin kicked off his head coaching career averaging just over 11 wins per season from 2007-2011.

Though his team flatlined in 2012 and 2013 with two 8-8 seasons, he got the ball rolling again with another four consecutive seasons averaging over 11 wins from 2014-2017.

Still, with all of his success throughout his career, things are really starting to take a turn for the worse in Pittsburgh, and Mike Tomlin and his staff are at the center of it all.

The Steelers missed the playoffs in 2018 as they imploded down the stretch – losing 4 of their last six games. After a six-game win streak midway through the season in 2018, Pittsburgh was given over a 90 percent chance of making the playoffs. However, disaster struck late in the year, and the Steelers failed to make the tournament.

Mike Tomlin is now just 9-9-1 since the start of the 2018 season. Even more concerning is that he is only 2-7 in his last 9 games.

The Steelers were considered contenders when they entered the league, but now history shows they have just a 3.4 percent chance to make the playoffs.

At the same time, Mike Tomlin can boast that he has never had a ‘losing’ season in his first 12 seasons as the Steelers head coach. That, however, could be about to change.

Tomlin’s coordinators also deserve a good portion of the blame for the disastrous start to the 2019 season. Randy Fichtner was overly conservative with Mason Rudulph at the helm. Despite Steelers defense generating 5 takeaways, Fichtner’s offense was only able to put up 20 points against the 49ers last week.

Fichtner has been mainly predictable all season in his play-calling and has failed to get anything going on the ground for his offense. Pittsburgh is averaging just 64 rushing yards per game.

Keith Butler has been equally unimpressive on the opposite side of the ball. The Steelers defense is 28th in the NFL in points allowed through three weeks – over 28 points per game.

Bulter also hasn’t much of an answer against the run (allowing 139.3 rushing yards per game). Despite being tied for the 5th best turnover margin, Steelers are 29th in total defense – allowing 442 yards per game.

Firing the coaching staff isn’t always the best means of solving your early-season woes. However, changes need to be made quickly on both sides of the ball. The Steelers are an 0-3 football team, and we have come to expect more of them.