With the Steelers’ defense struggling, here are five potential replacements for their current defensive coordinator.
The Steelers defense is in one of the coldest spells that it has been in a while. The young defensive backs have not developed, and the run defense has been mediocre. With longtime coordinator Keith Butler unlikely to be retained past this season, a new face will likely be the team’s coordinator next season.
Here are five potential options to replace Butler in 2022.
Steelers could add Butler
While the talk with the Bills has been the electric play of their young quarterback Josh Allen, one of the strongest elements of their team over the past few seasons has been their defensive backs. Both of their safeties have consistently been one of the top options at either free or strong safety. Meanwhile, Tre’Davious White has become one of the top coverage cornerbacks in the league. While not as flashy, the Bills’ reserve defensive backs have also developed into starting-caliber players.
Most of the success here can be attributed to John Butler, their defensive backs coach. He has been able to keep a stable group of stars around while also developing the next wave of starters at the position. For a Steelers defense that has failed to develop young defensive backs and has lacked interceptions, Butler would be a refreshing addition to the team. The Steelers haven’t had a consistent secondary for a while and adding a defensive backs guru like Butler would be a huge get for the defense.
Steelers could add Pellegrino
While Butler would be a fine addition to this coaching staff, a real get for the secondary would be a different coach from the AFC East. While the Patriots’ resurgence this year was a bit shocking, the continued dominance of their secondary isn’t. Consistently, the Patriots have always found ways to field a top secondary. No matter who is back there for the team, the Patriots have found ways to stop opposing passing offenses.
The main reason for the success here has been the amazing work that Mike Pellegrino has done with the defensive backs. From giving veterans like Devin McCourty a career resurgence to getting the most out of highly touted players like Kyle Dugger, to developing J.C. Jackson, a former undrafted free agent, into one of the best cornerbacks in the league.
Even better, Pellegrino has seen a consistent change in terms of who’s starting in his secondary. Stephon Gilmore was the best defensive back in the league while with the Patriots, and even after he was traded this year this secondary didn’t miss a beat. Pellegrino would be a huge get for a defense that has failed to develop members in their secondary. He would be a great step forward in bringing back an elite secondary.
Steelers could promote Dunbar
While all of the coaches listed before are currently on different teams, the lone player that can and should be promoted from this current staff is defensive line coach Karl Dunbar. Taking over for the legendary John Mitchell was never going to be an easy task, but Dunbar has helped guide this team into a new era of defensive line success.
From Cameron Heyward taking his game to the next level to Tyson Alualu becoming a surprisingly elite nose tackle, he has helped the big guy’s upfront play to their best ability. Dunbar is also tasked with working with the edge rushers. There, he has helped T.J. Watt become the league’s best edge rusher and he turned Bud Dupree from a bust into a respectable pass rusher.
While the defensive line has taken a step back this year, that is more due to the obscene number of injuries at the position. Even then, the team is still one of the best pass-rushing units and he has gotten some great play out of Chris Wormley and Isaiahh Loudermilk. Dunbar has done an incredible job of making this unit into an elite force. Dunbar makes the most sense for an in-house hire and should be seen as the favorite to land this job if Butler is released.
Steelers could add Schwartz
One of the more experienced names on this list, Jim Schwartz could make a lot of sense to bring to the team. He has consistently taken on bad defensive units and turned them into respectable ones. While his head coaching tenure has marked him as a bad hire, Schwartz has consistently fielded some of the top defensive units when he has been tasked with doing so.
Take the Eagles in 2016. Schwartz took on one of the league’s worst defenses and had a successful turnaround in his first year. Every aspect of their defense saw improvements and was better than the year before. Even now, with him being a senior advisor for the Titans, their defense has taken on a better form. Now, their secondary and run defense are a developing unit in the NFL, and all of that is partially due to Schwartz.
After a mediocre tenure from Butler, Schwartz would be a fresh and experienced face to add to this defense. The focus with adding a coach like Schwartz is his experience and past success in the league. He would be a great fit to take on a defense that already has a lot of talent but needs a few more pieces to be elite again.
Steelers could add Caldwell
Outside of Dunbar, the best name for the Steelers has to be Mike Caldwell from the Buccaneers. The linebackers coach has seen almost every player that he has interacted with becoming a successful player in the league. He has continued the success of linebacker Lavonte David while also aiding in the incredible development of Devin White.
Considering the struggle that the Steelers have seen in developing Devin Bush, adding a linebackers coach to work with him would be a big get. As well, the Buccaneers as a whole have seen their linebackers contribute to the Buccaneers’ run defense. Both are accomplished at filling their games and stifling the opposing running backs.
On top of this, Caldwell had a long and successful tenure as a linebacker in the NFL, meaning he knows the ins and outs of the position. Mix that in with his proven track record of good coaching and development of talent and he has to be a hot name for the Steelers’ potential defensive coordinator job. He has a long history of success behind him, and the team could use a stable run defending coordinator.
With Butler likely coaching his final games as the Steelers defensive coordinator, the team will be on the hunt for a new defensive leader next year. While not a complete list, these five names make a lot of sense for the team. Keep them in mind as the team finishes up their season and begins to look for new coaches.