Ironically, today was the day I gave my formal 2014 Season Grade for Dick LeBeau and now he goes up “one-ups” me by resigning as the team’s defensive coordinator.
LeBeau was quoted in the Urbana Daily Citizen in Ohio today. “I’m resigning this position, not retiring,” LeBeau told the newspaper. “I had a great run in Pittsburgh. I’m grateful for all the things that have happened to me and thankful for all the support I had in Pittsburgh.”
ESPN.com is reporting that LeBeau is “OK” with leaving Pittsburgh and is “ready for what comes next” but he wanted to return in 2015.
If this is true, and I have no reason to believe it is not, then LeBeau was given the opportunity to resign or he was going to be told he wasn’t coming back. This has been the usual custom following each season since he returned to coach the defense in 2004. He was typically allowed to decide his own fate.
I have longed believed that coaches can spend too much time in the same place. I realize that isn’t a view shared by everyone but I feel it was the case with LeBeau. Take talent away from the equation and I believe he was still becoming predictable and his opponents were finding the recipes to beat him more often than ever.
If you consider the talent, yes it matters greatly especially when you look at the last few years, but I still believe this is the right move. The defense has struggled to create turnovers and has struggled in creating a consistent pass rush in recent years.
I have to believe this will also have an affect on the futures of Troy Polamalu, Ike Tayor, Brett Keisel and James Harrison as well. Keisel I fully believe was done either way but I can see the other three being done too.
Let me be clear; I don’t “dislike” Dick LeBeau. I have tremendous respect for him as a former player, a coach and as a man. That doesn’t mean those things warrant staying on another year.
Popular opinion is that Mike Tomlin will not want to stray too far from the 3-4 scheme even though he’s a Tampa Two guy. That means linebackers’ coach Keith Butler is the likely replacement.
There are many who will be disappointed by this decision and that’s normal but change happens and there will be some growing pains with whomever replaces him but I still feel this is the correct decision.
Marc Uhlmann writes for and co-owns www.steelcityblitz.com. Follow him on Twitter @SteelDad and the website @SCBlitz. Check us out on Facebook at facebook.com/steelcityblitz and on Fancred.com. You can hear him weekly during the season on game day on the Trib-Live Radio Steelers Pre-Game
7 comments
Why change systems? this team is not equipped for any other Defense than the 3-4. If the go 4-3 then it means they care more about coverage than pressuring the QB and the same goes with the Tampa 2. Only morons want the Steelers to change there style, real fans will stay true and believe in the 3-4 and if that offends people or make them mad I have one thing to say to those people: I DON’T CARE IF YOU GET OFFENDED OR MAD I REALLY REALLY REALLY DON’T. Everybody knows the key to the 3-4 is the LB’s specifically the OLB’s. In the 4-3 it’s about D-Linemen and I hear people say go with Heyward, McClendon, McCullers and Tutitt well have you thought about there backups or do really not care about that, besides you people ran your mouth on McClendon all year when he nor McCullers can replace the man in the form of “Big Snack” Casey Hampton and what he did for the team. If you people think your smart then tell me who should be the next Steelers DC or are you as I have said many times before completely incapable of naming the next Steeler DC?
It’s pretty clear to that Tomlin made this decision. That doesn’t mean it’s automatically going to be a switch to a 4-3. My gut feeling tells me that there is going to be a push more towards a hybrid defense. Base defenses really don’t exist much in this era of three and four wide sets. The Steelers have averaged over 55% in the last three years in terms of nickel/dime coverage. My guess is that Butler gets the nod and the system stays similar in terms of terminology but I think you’ll see a different style.
If you look at the OLB’s who really fits a 4-3 scheme? Butler runs the same system as LeBeau but remember we all assume that we don’t know if Butler does things just slightly differently than LeBeau. The 3-4 is not predicated on CB’s it’s based on the Pass Rush. They fix the pass rush than it really wouldn’t matter who is the back end of the D. You have Tuitt and Heyward starting though I worry about Tuitt knowing that he will have the job from Day 1 he will have to do some things differently at his position that I know and you know as well. If the don’t let Butler have control of the Defense as the DC he will walk out the door and he may even blast the Steelers Front Office and Coaching Staff. So let Butler run the show on D and go from there.
I wouldn’t worry about Tuitt. I think he’ll be fine regardless of what direction the defense goes in… I believe Butler gets the nod but there is an argument to be made that a change to a 4-3 is possible with most of the secondary expendable. As you mentioned the LBs are the problem. Could Timmons transition to a MLB? Probably, but who plays OLB? Because the offense is so good, I don’t think we’ll see a switch to the 4-3. More likely just some alterations to DLB’s system.
Tomlin himself said at his exit press conference that he wasn’t going to move any ILB’s to the OLB spot. The offense has almost all the pieces in place except for backup RB. That spot gets filled by Tate and yeah I know he didn’t do much vs Baltimore but he had only 3-4 days tops to learn the Offense so I say resign him at a 1 year deal and draft a young RB or go with Harris at the No.3 RB spot.
The offense is getting there the play calling and run blocking are still an issue. As for the defense where’s the pass rush and cover corners??? Right now it’s pretty apparent that they aren’t on the roster. It’s time for the front office to get the job done because we are close. I know that this team can generate yards but stats don’t win games in this league it’s the first to 30 and slow the other guy down.
Finding those guys is not easy no matter what any of us the fans say. If you want the Steelers to regain there dominance on Defense then you can’t act as a fan you have to act like the GM and Coach for the Steelers. That type of acting requires you to create a big board and think out every possible situation in the draft war room and yes I know it’s not that easy but look at it from there perspective and you’ll see saying the right guy to get picked and the one that actually gets picked are 2 different things.