NFL Rumors: Steelers fans stopped Mike Tomlin from making a catastrophic mistake
NFL Rumors: Steelers fans stop Mike Tomlin from making critical mistake.
If not for the howl of Steelers fans, Mike Tomlin might not have fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada midseason.
Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Baltimore Ravens/Rob Carr/GettyImages
The Pittsburgh Steelers fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada midway through his third season in charge of the offense. To be honest, it wasn’t good. Kenny Pickett’s growth slowed. The running game didn’t show much promise and the Steelers ranked last in the NFL in key offensive categories.
So Mike Tomlin did the right thing and made Canada go. The noise from almost every sporting event in Pittsburgh was deafening. “Fire Canada” has become a staple of Steelers’ Sunday games. Tony Dungy, Tomlin’s legendary coach and friend, says outside influences played a role.
“He said, ‘I had to do this because everybody loved him and Matt Canada couldn’t be himself,'” Dungy said. “So I had to do it for all of us and everyone responded.”
Steelers: Did Mike Tomlin wait too long to fire Matt Canada?
Maybe I’m reading too much into this, but it’s not like Tomlin fired the Canadiens because of performance issues. As Dungy and Rodney Harrison point out in their segments, Tomlin’s loyalty is a big part of why he’s so beloved by players and assistants. It was Steve
