The Pittsburgh Steelers have now released their initial 53-man roster after going through the entire offseason with 90 players. Pittsburgh will be on the road to kickoff the 2024 season, as Mike Tomlin will be facing off against a friend and mentee. On Sunday, September 8th at 1:00 ET, the Steelers will square off against Raheem Morris and the Atlanta Falcons, where it will be Morris' first game as a head coach since 2011. Tomlin and Morris have a shared history, but that won't mean much to either of them when they walk into Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Tomlin and Morris spent four years together coaching the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2002-2005. Both coached Tampa Bay on the defensive side with the defensive backs, so the two collaborated a lot. There, they spent a great deal of time forming a wonderful relationship that both are very fond of to this day.
During a recent press conference, Morris looked forward to his upcoming duel with Tomlin and the Steelers. When he was asked if Tomlin knew that Morris has a spot-on impersonation of him, he shared a tactic he would use in order to improve his coaching abilities.
"He absolutely does. I was his assistant," Morris told reporters. "I always ran the meetings after practice. I ran the meetings and I was sometimes doing his voice, and he'd lean outside of his office which was a closet and he'd go 'Hey, are you imitating me or you coaching?' And we all laugh, all the players knew. It really wasn't picking on him. It really was emulating some greatness and some of the things he was able to do. Like, nobody can hold the form like Mike Tomlin. It's more about me emulating really good things and stealing it. I've been able to do that over the years."
After crediting Tomlin and his unique skill set with coaching, Morris quickly reminded reporters that it's all business on September 8th.
"It just so happens in Week 1 man, he's gray matter. He knows it."
Both coaches are working with new and unfamiliar faces at quarterback, as Russell Wilson and Kirk Cousins are in the midst of making some final pushes late in their careers. It's going to be a fun game for the two coaches to go up against each other, but it's likely that only one will walk away happily with a Week 1 win.
The Steelers haven't lost to the Falcons since 2006, and have won four straight games straight. The last time the two organizations faced off was in 2022, when Kenny Pickett and Minkah Fitzpatrick led the black and gold to victory.
Could we see a reenactment of this play from Fitzpatrick in Week 1 in Atlanta?
Steelers Vs. Falcons Going To Look Way Different Than Previous Years
If one thinks that this game is going to be boring or low quality; think again. Both squads have been pretty ugly offensively in recent seasons, but huge additions have been made since. This Falcons team is going to be different in 2024.
Along with signing Cousins in the offseason, the Falcons also drafted Bijan Robinson in 2023. Robinson quickly became one of the top running backs in the NFL, and his stock for 2024 is sky-high. On paper, the Falcons have a high-powered offense with Cousins, Robinson, Drake London and Kyle Pitts.
Pittsburgh also got better during the offseason. Arthur Smith, who was the head coach for Atlanta the past few seasons, is now the offensive play-caller for the Steelers. His dynamic and run-heavy offense are exactly what Pittsburgh's running backs needed. The Falcons are the favorites as the home team, so can the Steelers possibly come away with the upset?
