A league source confirmed reports Monday that Shane Steichen will be the Eagles’ offensive coordinator under new head coach Nick Sirianni.
Steichen, 35, was the Los Angeles Chargers’ offensive coordinator under former head coach Anthony Lynn, who was fired at the end of the 2020 season. Steichen spent nine years with the Chargers in two stints, separated by a one-year interlude with the Cleveland Browns in 2013. He worked alongside Sirianni from 2014-17, when Steichen was an offensive quality control coach and then quarterbacks coach, and Sirianni was quarterbacks coach, then wide receivers coach.
Steichen is a former UNLV quarterback who took over the Chargers’ offense in the middle of the 2019 season when coordinator Ken Whisenhunt was fired. The offense improved in the second half of that season.
In 2020, Steichen and the Chargers transitioned to rookie quarterback Justin Herbert, who showed excellent promise, completing 66.6% of his passes for 4,336 yards, 31 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, and a 98.3 passer rating.
Former Colts offensive coordinator Sirianni, Steichen, and passing-game specialist Kevin Patullo, who reportedly is leaving that position in Indianapolis to join Sirianni with the Eagles, would seem to be the major figures charged with sorting out the Eagles’ quarterbacking situation. Carson Wentz nosedived to the bottom of the league in 2020, his fifth NFL season. Wentz was benched in favor of rookie Jalen Hurts for the final four games. Hurts provided energy and something of a different look to the offense, but the results didn’t change.
Team owner Jeffrey Lurie and general manager Howie Roseman want to see a reinvigorated Wentz, after having invested $128 million in a four-year, contract extension in 2019. Trading Wentz this offseason would put a cap-pressed team in even more of a bind, incurring what would be a league-record $34 million dead cap charge. Wentz was said to be disaffected from fired head coach Doug Pederson, wanting a trade. Sirianni reportedly has spoken with Wentz, but there has been no word from the quarterback about his view of the situation.
Two weeks ago, when Lurie explained his decision to move on from Pederson, Lurie called Wentz “very fixable.”
Patullo and Steichen’s arrivals apparently will lead to Press Taylor’s departure. According to an NJ.com report, the Eagles’ pass-game coordinator and quarterbacks coach is not expected to be retained on Sirianni’s staff. The move isn’t all that surprising considering the offensive coaching hires Sirianni has already made. Still, it leaves the Eagles in the market for a quarterbacks coach.
Just last offseason, Taylor was considered one of the promising assistants on Pederson’s staff, getting a promotion that added pass-game coordinator to his title after two seasons as the team’s QBs coach.
Steelers promote Canada
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t look very far to find a new offensive coordinator, promoting quarterbacks coach Matt Canada to the position on Monday to replace Randy Fichtner.
The Steelers opted not to renew Fichtner’s contract following a first-round playoff loss to Cleveland. Pittsburgh will now turn to Canada — hired a year ago to help develop a relationship with Ben Roethlisberger and mentor young backups Mason Rudolph and Josh Dobbs — to inject some life into an offense that sputtered down the stretch. The Steelers lost five of their final six games following an 11-0 start and finished last in the NFL in both yards rushing and yards per carry.
Fixing the running game during the offseason is a priority, but it’s just one of many Canada will face in his first year on the job.
Roethlisberger remains under contract for the 2021 season, but has seen familiar faces leave in recent weeks. Fichtner was let go earlier this month and tight end and good friend Vance McDonald announced his retirement last Friday. Wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Conner are free agents and the team is still searching for an offensive line coach to replace Shaun Sarrett, whose contract was not renewed.
Canada is hardly an unknown quantity in Pittsburgh. He served as the offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Panthers — who share a training facility with the Steelers — in 2016, overseeing a dynamic attack that led to him being a finalist for the Broyles Award as the nation’s top assistant.
LSU was so impressed it offered him the same title and a massive pay raise to come to Baton Rouge. Canada’s stay in the Bayou lasted just one season. He quickly moved on to become the offensive coordinator at Maryland and found himself thrust into the role of interim coach in 2018 when D.J. Durkin was suspended and ultimately fired in the aftermath of the death of offensive lineman Jordan McNair. Canada led the Terrapins to a 5-7 record while directing an offense that put up more than 30 points seven times, including 51 in an overtime loss to eventual Big Ten champion Ohio State.
Canada’s promotion gives Pittsburgh some continuity and could play a role in whether Roethlisberger — who has a salary cap hit of more than $41 million for 2021 — returns. The two appeared to generate a solid rapport in their one season together. Roethlisberger and Canada could be seen working together on Wednesdays on fundamentals such as footwork.
Canada’s promotion was the second vacancy filled by the Steelers on Monday. Earlier in the day, the club hired longtime NFL assistant Alfredo Roberts as its new tight ends coach.
Roberts replaces James Daniel, who retired earlier this month after 17 seasons with the Steelers and 27 overall in the NFL.