For Arthur Smith, the team comes first. And when a player has a problem, coming straight to him instead of acting out on social media is the solution. Sharing his mindset during his weekly Thursday meeting with the media, Smith is happy the Pittsburgh Steelers have a selfless group of players.
“We certainly communicate a ton,” Smith told reporters in a team-issued transcript of getting on the same page with players throughout the season. “I think the more you get to know people and trust, just having real conversations. Maybe go old-school, instead of getting on social media and sending weird emojis and passive-aggressive things, you just have a real conversation person to person, just the way it should be.
“I love these guys. We’ve got a lot of good guys in there. All the guys want to do is win. The guys don’t care who gets the credit.”
Smith’s comments came on the heels of being asked about heart-to-heart conversations DK Metcalf revealed he had with Smith following Week 13’s loss to the Buffalo Bills. The defense shared similar conversations, too.
Despite being the Steelers’ No. 1 receiver with a $150 million contract, Metcalf has been low-maintenance. He hasn’t pouted, hasn’t gotten confrontational, subbed in at gunner, and has a minor social media presence. Despite being uninvolved in the offense for long stretches, Pat Freiermuth has proven to be a great teammate who hasn’t complained about not getting the football enough. Jaylen Warren has a good relationship with Kenneth Gainwell and rookie Kaleb Johnson despite the three competing for touches.
Smith’s comments aren’t new. We noted these things when Pittsburgh hired him in 2024.
“We won’t play them,” Smith said in a 2021 clinic when asked about players who don’t fit the culture. “I’ll look to get guys out of there.”
Smith isn’t the decision-maker, but Pittsburgh has accommodated his offense every step of the way. Be it multiple tight ends, a zone running scheme, and trading unpredictable WR George Pickens this offseason. This move made the roster worse, but arguably improved the culture. Pickens initially flourished in Dallas, but the honeymoon might be coming to a crashing end.
“When you listen to people, you can see who the ‘me’ guys are…I’ve never been a part of that,” Smith said. “I never believed that. I was never raised that way.”
Smith’s offense is about spreading the football around. Rarely does one player dominate. At its best, that can be an effective scheme to insulate against dedicated defensive game plans and injuries. That was evident in Monday’s win over Miami, in which five different Steelers ran the ball and eight different ones caught a pass. But that requires a certain buy-in across the board. Smith thinks he’s got it.