3 biggest offseason questions Pittsburgh Steelers need to answer

2. Should Mike Tomlin be retained?

Tomlin can’t escape 100 percent of the blame for his team’s late-season swoon. Injuries certainly decimated the Steelers’ roster, but the coaching staff couldn’t find many solutions to help maximize the talent still available to them down the stretch. Tomlin’s conservative decision to punt the ball in Browns’ territory in the second half of the playoff loss epitomizes his limitations as a game manager.

It might just be time for the Steelers to hear a different voice in the locker room. Every NFL coach has a shelf life and it’s quite possible Tomlin has worn his welcome out in Pittsburgh. That doesn’t make him a bad coach. If let go, he’d surely become one of the hottest coaches on the market, and teams would be wise to consider blowing up their coaching staff to reset with someone like Tomlin. Think of Tomlin’s next act not unlike what Andy Reid has done with the Chiefs.

But that doesn’t mean the Steelers shouldn’t change things up.

Even if Tomlin is retained, the organization should make some big changes when it comes to his support staff. Randy Fichtner cannot be retained as the team’s offensive coordinator under any circumstances. It’s possible that a sufficient change in the team’s offensive philosophy can emanate from a coordinator change without ousting Tomlin.

Some Steelers fans might argue that charting a course at head coach has to be the organization’s top priority. That ignores one obvious fact about the modern NFL. It’s a quarterback-driven league. That’s why Tomlin’s future only comes in at No. 2 on this list.