Mike McCarthy Steelers offense
Mike McCarthy Steelers offense
While those who played for him miss Mike Tomlin, those on the Steelers’ offense appreciate what Mike McCarthy brings. For many on this roster, this is their first time having an offensive-minded head coach. It’s been particularly obvious for lifelong Steelers, who have only ever known Tomlin.
Ben Skowronek is not one of those lifelong Steelers, nor does he play on offensive much, but he sees the impact that mike McCarthy is having. Appearing on The Fehoko Show, he talked briefly about the effect he has seen on the team.
“To have an offensive head coach I think is gonna be really good. Not only for the team, but the development of a lot of offensive players”, Skowronek said of McCarthy and what he can do for the Steelers’ offense. “I think you’re gonna see some guys break out this year that maybe a lot of people wouldn’t expect”.
Now, he doesn’t specify skill position players, but those are generally who you would consider as breakout candidates. Skowronek never elaborates on who he means, but we could, perhaps, consider players like Roman Wilson or Riley Nowakowski. Perhaps even whoever their third-string running back ends up being, like Lew Nichols or Max Hurleman. But he could also be talking about members of the Steelers’ offensive line, like Max Iheanachor or Spencer Anderson.
Thanks to McCarthy, the Steelers are facing heightened expectations for the offense. Among other things, people expect him to draw the best out of Aaron Rodgers in his final season. While Rodgers did well enough last year, there must be more if this unit is going to thrive.
The offensive line is really at the heart of the matter. We know the Steelers have running backs who can create on offense and a quarterback who can pick a defense apart if afforded the time to do so. What we don’t know is whether either party will have the environment conducive to allowing their skills to thrive. But those running it seem confident in what they’re doing and what it will produce.
“It’s been great. We’ve learned a lot, we’ve had a lot of great install, a lot of competitive periods during practice”, Skowronek said of what he has witnessed from the Steelers’ offense during the offseason. “I’m excited for this year with him and the new staff. There’s a lot of great additions to the staff”.
The Steelers, of course, nearly entirely replaced the coaching staff under Mike McCarthy, with one exception each on offense and defense. On offense, he retained quarterback coach Tom Arth, whom he once coached as a player. Arth is his righthand man in his greatest challenge, which is developing a young quarterback room while managing a legend’s final season.
But these are the sorts of things head coaches with a background on offense are supposed to be able to handle, and it’s one of the reasons the Steelers hired McCarthy. He knows why he’s here, and it’s not just to remind people that he grew up in Greenfield, shockingly enough.