Mike Tomlin very clearly has his fingerprints all over the Steelers’ defense, but how much direct influence does he have on the offensive game plan? Given the conservative approach for the last several years, it seems that Tomlin is the common thread in that equation across three different offensive coordinators. But they went outside the organization to hire Arthur Smith last offseason, which seemed like a change in philosophy to the team’s approach to offense.
The conservative approach continued. Other than a brief explosion in Week 13 against the Cincinnati Bengals, the offense sputtered over the final stretch of the season, and many pointed to the game plan as a big reason why.