At the tail end of the 2024 NFL season, there were reports that Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith and quarterback Russell Wilson were at odds with one another. When you lose five consecutive games, tensions are certainly high, but there was a question as to why there was tension between the two. According to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the issues stem back to Smith limiting Wilson.

Smith reportedly stopped letting Wilson change calls at the line of scrimmage.

“Multiple sources have told the Post-Gazette the offense lacked imagination and that the audibles and route adjustments Wilson was making at the line of scrimmage were creating a conflict with offensive coordinator Arthur Smith… According to several sources, Smith did not want Wilson changing plays at the line of scrimmage, like he did in Cincinnati, and deviating from the game plan.”

While many fans and media members, myself included, laid a lot of the blame on Wilson for the shortcomings of the offense, this makes Smith look petty and resentful. Wanting to run the ball is one thing, but when it isn’t working and a veteran future Hall of Fame quarterback has the smarts to check out of a play and audible to a successful play. If the run game worked, then perhaps Smith would have an argument, but the run game stunk. And instead of leaning into Wilson being very smart pre-snap, he took that away and it hurt the Steelers, should these reports be true.