Yesterday, Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported in his weekly chat that “multiple assistant coaches” could be on the chopping block after the Pittsburgh Steelers’ five-game losing streak to close the season. On 93.7 The Fan this morning, Fittipaldo gave one name who could be gone.
“Teryl Austin could be in the crosshairs here just because of the way the season finished. I think if they’re gonna eat one contract, I think Austin’s only has a year left, and you gotta do something after the way the defense got dominated in the playoff game and really the four regular-season games leading up to that. It’s hard to come back with the status quo there,” Fittipaldo said on The Fan Morning Show.
It wouldn’t be a surprise if Pittsburgh moved on from Austin given that its defense, which looked like one of the best in football early in the 2024 season, completely wilted down the stretch. The Steelers allowed 25 or more points in four of their final five losses, and they forced just five turnovers in the final five games of the season while failing to get consistent pressure.
If the Steelers do move on from Austin, it will be interesting to see what direction they go. Fittipaldo believes that Mike Tomlin has a significant hand in the defense, and if the Steelers go outside the organization, they could bring in someone who might not be as amenable to Tomlin having such a big role. Tomlin will likely be the decision-maker on who they hire unless Art Rooney II steps in, so the arrangement will probably be the same no matter who the team hires.
It wouldn’t be a good look for Tomlin and the Steelers to run things back with the same staff after the way the season ended, and moving on from Austin makes sense given how much the defense underperformed. Fittipaldo also mentioned Pat Meyer as someone who could be let go, but also said he might get another chance to come back due to the youth of Pittsburgh’s offensive line in 2024.
Either way, changes should be coming, and Austin feels like one of the most likely coaches to let go. If the Steelers do make that decision, it will likely come today or within the next few days so they can get a jump on hiring a replacement, so it could be a busy few days of staff news in Pittsburgh.
