Matt Canada Firing, Other In-Season Fixes Needed for NFL's Most Disappointing Stars
In a long overdue move, the Pittsburgh Steelers relieved offensive coordinator Matt Canada of his duties on Tuesday morning. The Steelers rank 28th in both total yardage and points scored, while the development of once-promising quarterback Kenny Pickett has stalled out.
Credit head coach Mike Tomlin and Pittsburgh's front office for making the decision in time to potentially salvage an up-and-down campaign. Despite being outgained in all 10 of their games thus far—making NFL history in the process—the Steelers are still in the playoff hunt at 6-4 and could find a spark with Mike Sullivan and Eddie Faulkner calling the shots.
The Buffalo Bills just showed this type of move can work. After replacing offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey with Joe Brady, they thrashed the New York Jets on Sunday, 32-6.
Pittsburgh and Buffalo aren't the only teams that should be making major personnel changes during the back half of the season. Several other squads direly need an overhaul now that it's become painfully clear what they're doing isn't working.
With that in mind, these in-season fixes could benefit some of the league's most disappointing teams and stars.
Atlanta Falcons: Have Arthur Smith Relinquish Play-Calling Duties
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Atlanta Falcons head coach Arthur Smith deserves to be on the hot seat not only for how he's handled his team's quarterback situation, but also for overseeing one of the league's most inconsistent offenses.
The Falcons started the year off with back-to-back wins, but they have since fallen to 4-6 and are riding a three-game losing streak. The team has been waffling between Desmond Ridder—the second-year signal-caller who opened the year as the starter—and journeyman Taylor Heinicke, but the results have disappointing regardless of which player is under center. Atlanta ranks 24th leaguewide in scoring with only 18.9 points per game.
For a team that has invested so heavily on skill-position talent over the past few years, the results aren't showing. Kyle Pitts has regressed from a 1,000-yard rookie campaign to only 419 yards and one touchdown on 35 catches this season. Drake London, the No. 8 overall pick in 2022, has caught 40 passes for 474 yards and two scores.
Even Bijan Robinson, the prized running back whom Atlanta drafted at No. 8 overall this past spring, has somewhat disappointed. While he's put up 820 yards and four touchdowns from scrimmage, he has been underutilized with only 154 touches in his first 10 games.
Smith needs to give up play-calling duties to snap Atlanta out of this funk. Whether he hands them over to offensive coordinator Dave Ragone or someone else, it's past time to shake things up and try to light a fire under this squad.
Atlanta has one of its best defenses in years—it ranks seventh in yards allowed right now—and still has a chance to secure its first playoff berth since 2017 in a wide-open NFC South race currently led by the 5-5 New Orleans Saints. Relinquishing the play calls might be humbling, but it's one Smith should consider to turn things around.
Carolina Panthers: Save Bryce Young from Frank Reich
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The Carolina Panthers hand-picked Bryce Young to be the centerpiece of their offense and planned to rapidly develop him into a superstar under new head coach Frank Reich. However, that pairing hasn't worked out yet.
It's time for Panthers ownership to consider alternative options with seven games left to play following a league-worst 1-9 start.
While Reich earned his reputation as a quarterback whisperer for his work with Andrew Luck and helped win a Super Bowl as the Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator, he hasn't found that same success in recent seasons. The Indianapolis Colts let him go midway through the 2022 campaign after their offense collapsed, and he hasn't been able to get Carolina's offense off the ground.
The Panthers currently rank No. 31 in total offense and No. 29 in scoring and aren't showing signs of progress. Reich temporarily conceded play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Thomas Brown in mid-October, but the offense remained as stagnant as ever with Brown calling the shots. After Reich reassumed control last week and the Panthers mustered only 10 points, it became clear that their play-calling answer is not on this coaching staff.
There could be a change coming down the pipeline after Fox Sports' Jay Glazer recently reported that Reich has the "hottest seat in the league." While most first-year coaches tend to get another chance to turn things around after a tough year, Reich's offense has been so inept and Young's development so slow that there's no reason to drag this relationship out.
Los Angeles Chargers: Clean House
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Los Angeles Chargers head coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco came into the season on the hot seat after the team blew a 27-point lead to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Wild Card Round. That meltdown should have resulted in a regime change, but the Bolts gave Staley and Telesco a chance to turn things around in 2023.
That decision looks even worse now that the Chargers are 4-6. They're last in the AFC West standings, largely because they're fielding one the league's most suspect defenses.
The Chargers hired Staley away from the Los Angeles Rams after he oversaw a No. 1-ranked defense, but none of his Chargers squads have ranked in the top half of either yards or points allowed. The 2023 version is his worst yet, ranking 31st in total defense and last in passing yards allowed.
Staley doesn't seem to be the right person for this job, and Telesco should be joining him on the way out. Since he took over as general manager in 2013, the Bolts have only reached the playoffs on three occasions and have never advanced past the divisional round.
While Telesco did draft a franchise quarterback in Justin Herbert, he's also made massive missteps like overpaying J.C. Jackson and then trading the cornerback away for almost nothing in return after only seven games with the club.
The Chargers need a complete reboot and fresh start to get back on track.
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New York Jets: Remove Robert Saleh
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The New York Jets' 2023 campaign went off the rails when Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles only four plays into his debut with the team. The Jets turned their offense back over to Zach Wilson from there, and they're now nearly out of playoff contention after three straight losses dropped them to 4-6.
While the lack of a capable backup behind Rodgers is an indictment of general manager Joe Douglas—who also deserves to be on the hot seat—head coach Robert Saleh stuck with Wilson for far too long.
While Wilson did enough to salvage the opener against the Buffalo Bills, it was clear he was in over his head during a three-interception showing versus the Dallas Cowboys the next week. Despite seeing the same version of Wilson that submarined Gang Green's postseason chances in 2022, Saleh continued to start the third-year signal-caller up through Week 11.
Wilson was finally benched after yet another abysmal outing this past weekend, but it could be too late for backup Tim Boyle or journeyman Trevor Siemian—the team's only quarterback signing in wake of Rodgers' injury and the new No. 2 on the depth chart—to make a difference. The Jets are in grave danger of missing the playoffs despite fielding a defense capable of making a Super Bowl run for the second successive year.
Saleh's tenure with the Jets started out with plenty of promise, but injuries and poor decision-making have marred his tenure. Relieving him of his duties and letting an interim coach take over could help trigger a much-needed turnaround over the final seven games of the year.
Even if Saleh's in-season firing doesn't result in a string of wins and a postseason berth, at least New York would be able to get a head start on finding his replacement.
Washington Commanders: Part Ways with Ron Rivera
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The Washington Commanders have been one of the most consistently mediocre teams in the league under head coach Ron Rivera. Since taking over in 2020, Rivera has guided Washington to a 26-34-1 record and is on the way to his worst campaign yet after a 4-7 start.
While the Commanders did reach the playoffs in his first season, they've missed out in each of the past two years. It would be shocking if that streak doesn't extend in 2023.
Although Washington hasn't had any postseason success under Rivera, the squad has fared well enough to avoid bottoming out and earning a top draft pick. Since the Commanders were never in position to draft a blue-chip quarterback prospect, couldn't lure any marquee free agents and failed to execute any trades, they opted to start 2022 fifth-rounder Sam Howell this season instead.
Howell has flashed some ability to be a quality NFL starter, but he's being asked to carry an offense far too early in his career. While he leads the league in passing yardage and has 18 touchdown passes this season, he also leads the league in passing attempts by a wide margin and is tied for the most interceptions with 12.
It's clear this approach isn't working. The Commanders have lost four of their past five games and have suffered some disheartening defeats to lowly foes like the Chicago Bears and rival New York Giants.
With a new ownership group now in place, it's past time for a coaching change in the nation's capital. While the organization may be waiting to lure someone like Bill Belichick during the offseason, Washington can at least try to finish out 2023 on a high note by having an interim coach run the show.
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