Losing Haley would be a setback

According to the Arizona Republic, Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley has been given permission to interview with the Cardinals for their open head coaching position.

Haley, a former offensive coordinator in Arizona, is held in high esteem by the Bidwell family after helping the Cardinals to the Super Bowl in 2008.

But if he leaves the Steelers after just one season, it will be a big setback.

The team spent an entire offseason last year learning a new offense - most notably new offensive terminology.

If Haley leaves, the Steelers will have their third offense in three seasons. With one of the youngest offenses in the league - outside of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger - that's a lot to throw at young players.

The Steelers have long prided themselves on continuity. It's one of the reasons why the team has had some much success over the past couple of decades. They have largely kept things the same, making things easy for young players to improve by learning the system better.

Now, certainly, the Steelers could offset the loss of Haley - if that happens - by promoting from within. Mike Tomlin's top choice a year ago would have been Kirby Wilson had he not been recovering from burns suffered in an accident in his home.

But at this point, Wilson's offense would likely be different from the one Haley runs. And he would faced with the choice of keeping Haley's terminology or returning to what the Steelers used before.

Plus, prior to injuries to Antonio Brown, Roethlisberger and half of the offensive line, the Steelers offense was producing under Haley in the first half of the season. They led the league in third down conversions, were second in time of possession and their scoring was up about a point-and-a-half from the previous season.

And that was with a group of players still learning the new offense.

Now, certainly, the team didn't finish as well. But the aforementioned injury problems were the main culprit for that.

Much has been made of comments Roethlisberger made regarding Haley's offense, particularly following a loss at Dallas.

But Roethlisberger has always taken shots at the offensive coordinator, whether it was Ken Whisenhunt or even his best buddy, Bruce Arians. He always wants to do things his way, which would include running the no-huddle exclusively.

And the offensive coordinators have had to reign him in.

The fact is, the rift between Haley and Roethlisberger just isn't there. It's a figment of the imagination of people who were waiting for a big blowup between the two that never happened.