Much as the Steelers parting with Todd Haley, now official, comes with the feel of fait accompli, it's still a fine way for the franchise to open what really ought to be a more introspective offseason.
That's not to get gleeful about Haley's departure, even though I didn't exactly tiptoe around the topic in my column Sunday following the 45-42 loss to the Jaguars in the AFC Divisional Playoff game at Heinz Field. His six-year tenure as offensive coordinator brought benefits, too, notably building up a playbook that was a bona fide success in maybe its most important charge in keeping Ben Roethlisberger upright. Roethlisberger resisted early, but he learned to stay in the pocket, work off his line and move the ball before taking some senseless hit. That's one big reason he's still playing and, better yet, openly discussing playing for years to come.
The initiative belonged to Art Rooney II on that count, but Haley got it done.
Huzzah.
Now, get someone better.
Get a coordinator who's more creative in terms of establishing a real offensive identity and flow. This offense was almost always at its best, including Sunday, when Roethlisberger and his targets were going all playground ball on everyone. What's needed is a real rhythm, time of possession, methodology, control.
Get a coordinator who's a whole lot less creative when trying to concoct, say, a fourth-and-1 run up the middle with the NFL's best running back and a battering-ram fullback in front of him.
And yeah, get a coordinator who the quarterback can at least stand.
A lot of the Roethlisberger/Haley stuff was overblown, but not all of it. I'm not guessing at that. I've heard plenty of it firsthand. And while there were times it seemed healed, it never, ever reached the point of feeling comfortable. Some of that was Ben's fault, but that doesn't matter in this mix because he's the indispensable piece here, not any coach.
That includes Mike Tomlin and Keith Butler, by the way, though the former was never going to be in trouble and it's now clear the latter isn't, either. But they need to get better, too, particularly Butler after seeing his defense get plucked apart by some spectacularly mediocre quarterbacks over the course of this season.
Blake Bortles?
Heck, I'm talking DeShone Kizer. Or any number of guys.
There's work to do. Tons of it.
And that begins, obviously with a replacement for Haley. I mentioned Randy Fichtner, Ben's deeply trusted positional coach, in the initial column, and I'll repeat it here. Going to the outside would be rough for a veteran group, given the difficulty of changing jargon/lingo. But going to someone on the inside who might bring new ideas that work in concert with the guy holding the ball, that would be progress.