Purpose and perspective

Sep 05, 2024 at 01:45 PM

Mike Prisuta

Steelers.com

Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith will be seeking victory this Sunday in Atlanta, not revenge.

"You gotta have a neutral mindset," Smith insisted regarding his upcoming return to Mercedes-Benz Stadium. "You always have history somewhere. I know this, obviously, is unusual a little bit but it's what it is.

"Your mindset's gotta be on our guys and doing everything you can just to win the game."

Smith went 21-30 in three seasons as the Falcons' head coach (2021-23).

He was fired after going 7-10 in 2023, his third consecutive 7-10 campaign.

"I'm not really an emotional, petty person," Smith continued. "You try to have discipline no matter who we're playing, whether it's us playing Atlanta this week or going to Denver next week for Russ.

"You get caught up in that, you're caught up in the wrong things."

Quarterback Russell Wilson is with the Steelers this season after spending the last two with the Broncos, the Steelers' opponent on Sept. 15 in Denver.

The two have spent much of their time since joining the Steelers focused on building a quarterback-coordinator relationship in advance of the season that's about to commence.

"What you're really looking for is the trust," Smith maintained. "It doesn't happen overnight. When you're new somewhere, you're out to prove yourself. Let their guard down a little bit, have real conversations.

"I just go with my experience with (quarterback Ryan) Tannehill (in Tennessee). Once I got to know Ryan, and really, I thought that helped us get in sync, you get honesty back and forth. It doesn't have to have the bravado when you ask somebody, 'Hey how do you see this?' 'Oh, I'm good,' and then you kind of watch it in practice, 'well, maybe they don't.'

"You're trying to find the truth because you never want to put somebody in a position they're not comfortable in. There's times you gotta press each other, things you have conviction on, push through it. And then other times you gotta know when, 'hey, this doesn't fit us.'"

Smith coordinated an offense in Tennessee quarterbacked by Tannehill that finished second in the NFL in yards per game and fourth in the league in points per game in 2020.

That helped get Smith hired as the head coach in Atlanta.

He's going back as an offensive coordinator but with a "completely different perspective," Smith insisted. "Things you used to worry about or maybe agitated you, once you've seen the other side of it you've got a little more empathy. What goes on, sometimes the 'why,' the decisions, there's a lot on a head coach's plate.

1 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward (97) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

2 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (39) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

3 / 24

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

4 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Beanie Bishop Jr. (30) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

5 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker T.J. Watt (90) and Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Nick Herbig (51) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

6 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen (6) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

7 / 24

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

8 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers safety DeShon Elliott (25) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

9 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Nick Herbig (51) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

10 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

11 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (24) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

12 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers safety Jalen Elliott (34) and Pittsburgh Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick (39) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers)

Alysa Rubin/Pittsburgh Steelers

13 / 24

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Calvin Austin III (19) during practice at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex preparing for a Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons, Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Taylor Ollason / Pittsburgh Steelers)