Time to blow it up: a foolproof plan to rebuild the Steelers in 2024

Steelers coaches and general manager plan

With my mindset on a rebuild, there are a lot of front office changes I will be looking to initiate. One that I won’t be making though is moving on from Omar Khan. Promoted from within, Khan has done a good job with what he has had so far, and I am confident in keeping him around for the future.

He has crafted quite a few savvy trades, is more aggressive than Kevin Colbert was without being overly so, and I like how he wants to use resources to build this roster. The emphasis was on trench play this past offseason, and he seems committed to building a team out from there. Add in his first draft being a strong one and there is no reason to part ways.

Coaching is a different story. Look, Mike Tomlin is rightfully looked upon as one of the better coaches in the league. Not having a losing season is impressive, even if the overall results haven’t been great. Players also want to play for him, which is a good trait to have in your leader.

The issue is, the game has seemingly passed him by. As he has earned more and more control over the team, things are built more like how teams looked in the mid-2000s. It’s a safe approach, but one that won’t yield much fruit.

I’m also openly nervous that the focus for this team is doing enough to maintain the span of non-losing seasons. That isn’t to say Super Bowls aren’t the goal, but the team is being built every season to do just enough as opposed to trimming the fat for the future even if it costs the team next season.

I also think that Tomlin has a lot of issues midseason. From poor prep during proverbial “trap games” to failing to make significant adjustments mid-game and mid-season, this team is what it is early and will sink or swing with little to no change.

I feel like Tomlin would be adverse to openly gutting the roster now in the hopes of having a competitor in a few seasons. As well, I want a hungry coach that is looking to make their mark and prove something. For these reasons, I part ways with Tomlin as the head coach.

My primary target is to find an offensive-minded coach, who is better than Ben Johnson from the Lions. Detroit has gone from one of the worst teams in the league to one of the best, and Johnson is allowing Jared Goff to have a career resurgence. He builds a complimentary run game to boost the passing game and has crafted a great offense every week. Dan Campbell is also a strong locker room guy, and I would love to have someone with a similar mindset.

Johnson is also likely to be the most coveted coaching candidate this offseason. My shortlist behind him is Bobby Slowik (Texans), Frank Smith (Dolphins), and Brian Johnson (Eagles), and likely in that order. All three have had success with their young quarterbacks and have top offenses in the NFL. I want that for my team moving forward.

As for assistants, I would rightfully leave a lot of that up to my new coach. While there are a handful of guys I would like to keep, I want my head coach to have the freedom to bring in who they want. No one is safe, as I want this team to be built in their image moving forward.