Chapter 1: Who is Nick Farabaugh and what is his perspective on the Steelers coaching situation?
Nick, it's a pleasure to have you. I don't believe we've ever spoken before. You're a recent graduate of Slippery Rock. Am I right about that? No. What a moment in time that was. Fan Twitter brought to you by South Hills Kia Peters Township. Visit them at SouthHillsKia.net.
And the text line brought to you by Edgar Snyder & Associates, a personal injury law firm where they always say there's never a fee unless we get money for you. Nick Farabaugh from PennLive.com. Nick, we had a YouTube commenter say that I was short of material today, and I told him that there's never been such obvious material in all my time on the air. The Steelers need a coach.
I don't have to search for material today. It's sitting right in front of me. Of the known candidates, who is your preferred choice?
My favorite would be Chris Shula. That's who I'd hire if I were the Pittsburgh Steelers. He fits the profile that they've gone to the last three times. That's not the only reason. I think he is the type of coach right now in the NFL that is on vogue in some respects. We are seeing a lot of Really good defensive coaches start to rise up against the offensive wave.
You know, there's the McVeigh's, there's the Cohen's, there's the Shanahan's, but there's also Mike McDonald's. There's those types now. And Shula, I think, fits into that branch really well. He has access to the McVeigh tree. And he's not just a guy that has been in the NFL for four years. You know, he's been on that staff since 2017.
You look at the profile he has put together as a position coach. He's coached outside linebackers, inside linebackers, secondary. He's coached defensive line. He's coached every single level of the defense. And every single year he coached a position group, a guy had a career year. Outside linebacker, it was Dante Fowler. Inside linebacker, Ernest Jones became what he is now in Seattle.
He has coached up guys that have become really good players. The secondary Quinton Lake has now become one of the best nickels in the NFL. He coached him up there. That's all him. And so that's what he does. He has a tried and true resume of development. And then he gets more than he has in terms of talent on the football field. The last two years, the Rams were 32nd in defensive spending.
And yet success rate, EPA per play, different stats like that. They were generally a top 10 defense.
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Chapter 2: Why is Chris Shula considered a strong candidate for the Steelers head coach?
They get a lot of sacks. They force turnovers. There's a lot there with him. I think that is really promising as a coach. And then as a defensive coach, he has access to a lot of good assistance. I think the Shula Sheilhaus kind of branch, that sounds like a really good idea to me. Hiring Chris Shula as your head coach, Nathan Sheilhaus comes in as your OC. I think that's really smart.
And then maybe you can bring in, you know, a guy like Raheem Morris as the defensive coordinator. That's a really strong start to his staff.
Do you think that's what the Steelers want to do? Shula seems to be the Vegas favorite right now. And do you think that Sheil Haas would be that this would be his best opportunity? Or do you think somebody may offer him a head coaching job?
I don't think Sheil House is going to get a head coaching job this year. I think he's a year or two away from that. I think teams are still hesitant to give it to a guy that's never called plays at this level. I think that is fair. He has been an offensive coordinator, but it was at Iowa State. I think they want to see it happen at the NFL level. And so he could have a great year next year.
The Steelers would be gone. But I do think the Steelers ā would love that Shula-Shielhouse pairing. I think that is something that is really appealing to them given the buzz Shielhouse is getting and given where Shula is in terms of the development and the tree that he can bring. I think that is very appealing to them, yes.
So let me think about this for a moment. It would be a defensive guy. We don't know if Shielhouse would come in with Shula, so let's just focus on Shula first. We just talked about this topic because if you have a defensive guy, then you have to have the right offensive coordinator, presumably to develop a younger quarterback. And then there's always the risk of that guy leaving.
So the the constant question, the question looming over all of this is is is. Is this the time the Steelers should choose an offensive head coach who knows how to develop quarterbacks? And that way you're coordinator proof, if you know what I mean. You don't have to worry about guys leaving, whatever, because your head coach, you know, has the background on that. What do you make of that?
I'm just not sure there's a candidate that I can describe in that manner on the offensive market this year. I just don't see that. If there was a Ben Johnson, if there was a Liam Cohen, I'd be all for it. There's not. I think that is kind of my ā when I talk with people about offensive coaches, I understand that.
If there was a really good, great offensive coach candidate on the market, I think that it would be a lot more appealing to do that. I just think right now you don't have that on the market. I mean, Sheil House has never called plays at this level. You know, Udinski has never called plays if you wanted to go to Jacksonville. Cohen calls the plays there.
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Chapter 3: What makes Nate Scheelhaase a potential offensive coordinator for the Steelers?
Miami was the team that got in over them. And here's Marcus Freeman, the Notre Dame head coach.
Are you sure he's the guy that took their ball and went home? Or was he ordered from those above, I wonder?
He was definitely complicit in that. I don't think they're doing that without Marcus Freeman's approval. He has bosses too, limits. Well, yeah. You know how much power Marcus Freeman has as a $15 million a year head coach? He probably makes more than the AD does.
I don't know if that was his idea or theirs. I don't know. He would be a compelling candidate. I know that much.
I do agree with that.
Who else would be at this point? Who haven't we thought of, Nick? Who else is out there that they might interview? Anybody you can think of?
Well, I mentioned him earlier. I think Udinski from Jacksonville is a name that I would bring in at least.
What about Sean McDermott?
I can see Sean McDermott being a guy that you would bring in. I'm just not sure he's perfect for the Steelers' job right now. We're kind of talking about a guy that failed to get over the hump where he was at with Josh Allen. And so you're kind of just speed running back the Tomlin stuff there. You need a culture builder. I think McDermott's a great hire.
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Chapter 4: Is now the right time for the Steelers to hire an offensive head coach?
I'm almost inclined just to have Rudolph and Will Howard trade Watt, get rid of Ramsey, try my best to get rid of Metcalf, although it's probably impossible, and just sort of have a reset. Or maybe go 9-8 and get blown out of the first round again. But I'm not so sure that's the worst idea. What about quarterback and what about a franchise reset?
Yeah, well, here's the thing about quarterback. The Steelers, as Bart Rooney said, are not going to lose. They're going to try and sign someone. So I just do not see them going in with Rudolph and Howard.
Would you?
I think they're going to draft someone. No, I wouldn't either. What's there to learn about Rudolph, I guess, is my question. I would rather sign Malik Willis.
Nothing, but there's a lot to learn about Howard.
Sure, but if I'm going to sign a young guy, give me Malik Willis. That's a guy that could legitimately turn into the long-term answer.
Did both of you guys know that Bob Pompeiani was on the air yesterday and said that he doesn't know that there's a big difference between Mendoza and Will Howard? Do you guys agree with that? He said it.
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Chapter 5: What challenges do young offensive coaches face in the NFL?
Go look at 130, 133. I'm not saying some people may agree. I don't know. Do you agree, Nick?
No, I don't. We've got to stop acting like Will Howard was selected early at all. He's a six-round pick. But why not give him a shot, Nick? You could, but here's the thing. He is a sixth round pick. Sixth round picks aren't entitled to anything in the NFL. That's the thing. He's going to have to have things break his way to get a shot. And it's just the reality of it.
That's just the reality of it. Brock Purdy only got a shot because Trey Lance's ankle snapped in two in his second start. You know, it took him a long time. And so here's the thing. I'm not against going young and having an ability where Howard can climb that ladder. But give me Malik Willis because I want to see a young quarterback that could maybe turn into something like that. Yeah. I'm fine.
I'm fine, honestly, with trading Mason Rudolph and just going Malik Willis, Will Howard. That's fine. Like, I'm fine with that.
I'd be curious about Malik, too, myself. Yes.
Right. I want youth, though. I want guys that have the shot of being the long-term answer. And so that to me is what you would bring in. I'd take probably another shot in the draft. You have 12 draft picks right now. You know, you take someone like, I don't know, Trinidad Chambliss, something like that.
Yes. Yes. I would take him in a second. I love that guy.
I do too. I like Trinidad Chandler. He's small and he's got some limitations physically, but I want to see what he's at. He's a gamer. If he doesn't get his waiver, I'd sign up for that. That's the type ā they need to go youth at quarterback. But what they're probably going to do is they're probably going to try and get blood out of a stone and bring in Kirk Cousins or Tua or Kyler Murray.
What don't you like about Will Howard? Why ā Don't you think he should get a chance? Because if we can find Bob's clip from yesterday, I know it's going to take some doing. But I think a lot of people think along the lines of Bob, like the Steelers may have gotten a steal. And are they ever going to find out about him?
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Chapter 6: How does the Steelers' coaching search compare to previous years?
But let's say they get into where the Browns are. They have a Browns year like the Browns had this year where they're 2-10 and the guys at quarterback are clearly not good. Throw Will Howard out there. I'm fine with that. But he is a six-round pick. And six-round picks just naturally are not entitled to much in the NFL.
I hear you.
I think he's going to outlast that. I think he's going to outlast that draft billing regardless. But I think a long-term backup outcome from him is great. Look at how many six-round pick quarterbacks are out in the league in two years.
I hear you. It would be interesting, though, if they just said, listen, go play. And if it doesn't work, then we'll be bad.
Chapter 7: What are the implications of hiring Anthony Weaver as a candidate?
And that'll be actually good. Or we may have a diamond in the rough. But I'm formulating still my opinion on Malik Willis, whether that would be a good idea. How does that square with a franchise reset, which is what I want them to do? There's still plenty of young talent around here, but I think it's time to trade T.J. Watt. Anyway, thank you, Nick.
Thanks, Joe, for having me on, as always.
Everybody has young talent. That's the thing, Nick. Now Nick's gone. And like the Steelers aren't unique in having good young players, every team in the NFL has good young players. Anywho, let's talk quarterback next. What do you want? We've talked a lot about the coach. Formulate a plan for me. What if I were to whittle it down to this? Would you rather just have Rudolph versus Howard in camp
Or would you like to bring in Malik Willis for a shot at this? You know, you'd have Rudolph Howard and then some vet you bring in to fill out the room, right? Or do you hand the reins to Malik Willis, make him the so-called front runner headed into camp? Would you make an effort to go get him?