Find someone who loves you the way Arthur Smith loves Cordarrelle Patterson. The current Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator revived the veteran playmaker's career in Atlanta when he was the head coach of the Falcons from 2021-23, much to the chagrin of many fans.
So it was the least shocking thing in the world that Smith then ostensibly brought Patterson with him to the Steelers last season. But on Monday, we got a massive shocker as Patterson broke the news that he'd been released by Pittsburgh in the early stages of training camp.
Patterson announced the news on X/Twitter with an allusion to Friday, saying that he was released on his day off.
Breaking news❗️❗️❗️Pittsburgh Steelers release old washed up cordarrelle patterson on his day off!!!
— cordarrelle patterson (@ceeflashpee84) July 28, 2025
Because Patterson mentioned it, it's worth noting that Patterson has seen his role and productivity diminish over last season with the Steelers and even the year prior in Atlanta. Across 27 games played, he had only 82 carries for 316 yards along with 21 catches for 118 yards. Even still, he was seeing playing time relatively frequently, getting 110 snaps on offense and 64 snaps on special teams with Pittsburgh last season, despite already having a stable of Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren ahead of him at running back.
With his release and how this offseason has gone, though, it's hard not to be hopeful that Smith might be changing from some of his more frustrating tendencies for fans.
Steelers releasing Cordarrelle Patterson could be great sign for Arthur Smith
The writing was somewhat on the wall this offseason for Patterson given how the Steelers have operated. Not only did they sign Kenneth Gainwell, Trey Sermon and Evan Hull as free agents, but then drafted Kaleb Johnson out of Iowa in the wake of Harris' departure on the open market. That was always like to push a 34-year-old Patterson off the roster.
At the same time, Smith has been frustratingly stubborn throughout his career. His idea of creativity has been easily-read packages with Patterson and just continuing to bang his head against the wall with the run game, so to speak. And make no mistake, the run game will still be part of his offense. However, this type of move does indicate that some changes might be coming.
We could see more outside-the-tackles running from the traditional, non-Patterson run game. We could see the younger, more talented stable of backs utilized in similar ways to Patterson as well, which could ideally open up more potentially explosive plays. More importantly, though, taking one mouth to feed out of the backfield also indicates that, despite some concern about the receiver depth, the arrival of Aaron Rodgers also likely changes what Smith is going to be doing with the offense.
Aaron Rodgers is the other factor that might change the Steelers offense
Rodgers and DK Metcalf are by far the best downfield threat combo that Smith has had in now two years with Pittsburgh. It's a small sample size, but that changes the calculus in a meaningful way to start with. When you then factor in reports that Rodgers could have his input in the offense, that also matters quite a bit.
When you have that and a younger group of running backs, the personnel doesn't totally match what we've seen from Smith in the past. There's always going to be some run-heavy looks and some dinking and dunking, but that's with any offense in the modern NFL, especially with an offensive line like the Steelers' that still has some questions. At the same time, the personnel might also be forcing Smith's hands.
We'll get a better look soon in the preseason how the Steelers offense has changed. However, Smith watching one of his clearly favorite toys in Patterson go out the door in Pittsburgh is a strong indication that the frustrating offensive stylings of last year might now be going by the wayside.