Early Options For Steelers Next OC

PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers have stayed in-house for four of their last five offensive coordinators - including Matt Canada. And while most on the outside want them to go beyond their traditional hiring process, they might not give too much leeway with their next OC.

While there are some ideal candidates who are hot names in the NFL's next hiring cycle, Pittsburgh could consider four realistic options for their next play-caller.

These are four "realistic" early options the Steelers could consider for hire at the end of the season.

Byron Leftwich

Leftwich will remain the team's hottest option until someone else is hired. The former Steelers quarterback has been brought up as a potential replacement before the 2023 season and then instantly popped up after the news of Canada's departure.

Leftwich was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' offensive coordinator from 2019-2022, helping the team claim a Super Bowl. However, in his final year with the team, the offense took a significant dip, finishing 25th in points per game.

Former players such as Ben Roethlisberger have said they'd like to see Leftwich return to Pittsburgh as the next OC. Time will tell if the Steelers are listening.

Eddie Faulkner

Faulkner will help quarterback coach Mike Sullivan replace Canada for the remainder of the season, and will be in the running to be the next hire as offensive coordinator full-time.

Faulkner's running game has been the slim bright spot in the Steelers offense this season, with two running backs nearing 500 yards. Helping Jaylen Warren emerge as a young star will certainly help his cause as well.

Faulkner was Ball State's offensive coordinator in 2009. That's a big chunk of time between then and now, but if this season goes well, maybe Pittsburgh will consider staying in-house with their next hire.

Kliff Kingbury

The former Arizona Cardinals head coach has had his share of success with young quarterbacks, coaching Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray in college and then Murray in the pros. He's now working as an assistant coach at USC, helping develop Caleb Williams.

This isn't a name many expect to be on the list, but Kingsbury and Tomlin have a relationship, and before he became the head coach of the Cardinals, he did spend some time hanging out at Steelers practices.

If Kingsbury wants to get back into the NFL as an offensive play-caller, teams will likely be thrilled to hire him, including the Steelers.

Duce Staley

Sticking with the theme of former players returning as coaches for the Steelers, here are two more. Duce Staley has made his way around the NFL as an assistant head coach and remains one of the top candidates to be hired as an OC next season.

Why not Pittsburgh?

Staley has worked with Andy Reid, Doug Pederson, and Dan Campbell, and has helped improve some of the league's top running games, such as Philadelphia's and Detroit's.

He'll probably be looking to get out of Carolina in the offseason, and if Pittsburgh ignores this past season with the Panthers, his resume is pretty impressive.

Antwaan Randle El

The next former Steeler is currently living in Detroit, coaching the wide receivers and helping turn a franchise that has longed for success into a contender. The Lions may not be perfect just yet, but their receivers are pretty close, and that's thanks to Antwaan Randle El.

Randle El is probably on the bottom of most people's "next offensive coordinator" list for a number of teams. He appears to be right on the verge of making the jump into a name teams will want to hire with the next wave of OCs. But if the Steelers are staying familiar to the organization, which they love to do, he might climb up the list a bit faster.

With two young star receivers in George Pickens and Diontae Johnson, and up-and-comers like Calvin Austin and Connor Heyward, Randle El could be an interesting name to watch for the Steelers.

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