The Steelers are in a position they haven't been in very often for nearly 60 years: Without a head coach. As the search begins for the franchise's fourth head coach since 1969, the message is quite clear for the man who lands the job.
"The standard is trying to compete to win a championship every year," Art Rooney II said Wednesday in a press conference at Acrisure Stadium. "I'm not sure why you'd waste a year of your life not trying to contend. Obviously, your roster is what it is every year, changes every year. You deal with what you have every year and try to put yourself in position to compete every year. Sometimes you have the horses, sometimes you don't, but I think you try every year."
Rooney and general manager Omar Khan will spearhead the search, gaining input from others atop the organization, and they'll begin compiling a list of candidates right away. Dan Rooney, Steelers vice president of business development and strategy, wasn't named by Rooney, but joined both he and Khan at the press conference.
It's been a long time since the Steelers have had to search for a head coach. The NFL has changed quite a bit since Mike Tomlin was hired in January 2007, who wasn't expected to land the job even when they first interviewed him. Even so, the Steelers' last two hires have fit a certain type: Both were young, had no head coaching experience and leaned toward the defensive side of the ball.
Regardless of the way the league has changed since then, Rooney feels he and Khan need to be light on their feet, just as the organization was when Tomlin was hired.
"For now, I don't want to put any parameters around it," Rooney said. "We're going to be an open book in terms of who we look for and the list that we build. Will I sign up for another Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher or Mike Tomlin? Sure. Somebody we feel that fits that mold would be great, but for now we're not going to narrow the box too much."
One parameter Rooney has set is no coach currently on staff will be a candidate to be the next head coach. Teryl Austin's contract has now expired, so he's most likely gone. Arthur Smith has one year remaining on his contract, but he has interviews lined up for head coaching jobs with the Titans and Cardinals, so he'll likely be gone, too.
Whomever is hired to become the next head coach, Rooney is prioritizing leadership as the No. 1 trait. He wants someone who is capable of doing the kind of things Tomlin, Cowher and Noll did in getting the most out of their players.
However, that's not the only trait Rooney is looking for. A new head coach should be able to provide a new vision for the future of how the team plays and how the roster is constructed. Innovation has served the franchise well in the past, and this is an opportunity to prioritize it again:
"Every coach we talk to will have a little different idea of his approach," Rooney said. "It'll be interesting to hear from people about that. You can always learn something during this interview process. It'll be interesting to hear maybe different perspectives on how to approach it."
Ideally, the next head coach will be someone who can bring both strong leadership and innovation on the field, how they scout, etc. The new coach will also have the freedom to put together the staff he desires, and will be expected to have similar power that Tomlin had in the decision-making process with Rooney and Khan.
"I don't think I anticipate really changing our structure or chain of command," Rooney said. "I expect the new head coach, like Bill Cowher, like Mike Tomlin, like Chuck Noll, to be very involved in preparing for the draft, working closely with Omar and his staff to make sure we're ready."
The stage is set. The list of candidates will start to coalesce quickly, and already has as the Steelers have requested to interview Rams passing game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase. And that request already shows the openness the Steelers have in this process, as Scheelhaase is an offensive-minded coach.
Buckle up. It's going to be an interesting process that's expected to last at least a couple weeks.
THE ASYLUM
Rooney an 'open book' in search
The Steelers are in a position they haven't been in very often for nearly 60 years: Without a head coach. As the search begins for the franchise's fourth head coach since 1969, the message is quite clear for the man who lands the job.
"The standard is trying to compete to win a championship every year," Art Rooney II said Wednesday in a press conference at Acrisure Stadium. "I'm not sure why you'd waste a year of your life not trying to contend. Obviously, your roster is what it is every year, changes every year. You deal with what you have every year and try to put yourself in position to compete every year. Sometimes you have the horses, sometimes you don't, but I think you try every year."
Rooney and general manager Omar Khan will spearhead the search, gaining input from others atop the organization, and they'll begin compiling a list of candidates right away. Dan Rooney, Steelers vice president of business development and strategy, wasn't named by Rooney, but joined both he and Khan at the press conference.
It's been a long time since the Steelers have had to search for a head coach. The NFL has changed quite a bit since Mike Tomlin was hired in January 2007, who wasn't expected to land the job even when they first interviewed him. Even so, the Steelers' last two hires have fit a certain type: Both were young, had no head coaching experience and leaned toward the defensive side of the ball.
Regardless of the way the league has changed since then, Rooney feels he and Khan need to be light on their feet, just as the organization was when Tomlin was hired.
"For now, I don't want to put any parameters around it," Rooney said. "We're going to be an open book in terms of who we look for and the list that we build. Will I sign up for another Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher or Mike Tomlin? Sure. Somebody we feel that fits that mold would be great, but for now we're not going to narrow the box too much."
One parameter Rooney has set is no coach currently on staff will be a candidate to be the next head coach. Teryl Austin's contract has now expired, so he's most likely gone. Arthur Smith has one year remaining on his contract, but he has interviews lined up for head coaching jobs with the Titans and Cardinals, so he'll likely be gone, too.
Whomever is hired to become the next head coach, Rooney is prioritizing leadership as the No. 1 trait. He wants someone who is capable of doing the kind of things Tomlin, Cowher and Noll did in getting the most out of their players.
However, that's not the only trait Rooney is looking for. A new head coach should be able to provide a new vision for the future of how the team plays and how the roster is constructed. Innovation has served the franchise well in the past, and this is an opportunity to prioritize it again:
"Every coach we talk to will have a little different idea of his approach," Rooney said. "It'll be interesting to hear from people about that. You can always learn something during this interview process. It'll be interesting to hear maybe different perspectives on how to approach it."
Ideally, the next head coach will be someone who can bring both strong leadership and innovation on the field, how they scout, etc. The new coach will also have the freedom to put together the staff he desires, and will be expected to have similar power that Tomlin had in the decision-making process with Rooney and Khan.
"I don't think I anticipate really changing our structure or chain of command," Rooney said. "I expect the new head coach, like Bill Cowher, like Mike Tomlin, like Chuck Noll, to be very involved in preparing for the draft, working closely with Omar and his staff to make sure we're ready."
The stage is set. The list of candidates will start to coalesce quickly, and already has as the Steelers have requested to interview Rams passing game coordinator Nate Scheelhaase. And that request already shows the openness the Steelers have in this process, as Scheelhaase is an offensive-minded coach.
Buckle up. It's going to be an interesting process that's expected to last at least a couple weeks.
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits!
We’d love to have you!