When people talk about different, it usually is referring to something which is worse. But not in every case, and that can include offenses at the NFL level. When the Pittsburgh Steelers wrapped up their mandatory minicamp players were asked a lot about the new offense being orchestrated by Arthur Smith. There were the usual comments made by playmakers throughout the offense, but one which stood out was “different”, and that was used by wide receiver Calvin Austin III.

Nonetheless, it wasn’t just Calvin Austin III to was talking about the differences between Smith’s offense and the past coordinator, Matt Canada.

“He’s a good guy to play for,” said tight end Pat Freiermuth. “He expects a lot from us. He is like Coach (Mike) Tomlin in a way where you know what he wants and if you don’t execute, you’re going to hear it. I think we all appreciate that. Coach T preaches the message, and our offensive coordinator also is.”

When it comes to how Smith is handling the job as the Steelers coordinator, it isn’t just how he is running practices, but even things like team meetings. Smith is holding players accountable, and this was throughout the Organized Team Activities (OTAs) and Mandatory Minicamp.

“Going into the team meetings, and the offensive meetings, him not being afraid to call people out for lack of execution, or for doing things in a good way,” said Freiermuth. “I think it’s been great from that perspective.”

Throughout Smith’s new tenure with the Steelers, he has made one thing clear…the Steelers are going to run the ball. Everything they want to do, even in the passing game, will be structured around the ability to run the football.

“He knows what he wants to see from us, running off the ball,” said Austin. “He is always around, talking to us. He is always pushing us, encouraging us. That will continue to help us because we know we have his full confidence.”

To be this type of team, the Steelers offense, all players at every position, will need to be tough. They’ll need to be, as Austin puts it, different in their willingness to do the dirty work to help the offense succeed.

“We just want to be tough and different,” said Austin. “To win a Super Bowl and get to where we want to go, you’ve got to be different. That is really the main goal.”

Can Smith get the best out of the offense and help fans erase the memories of the past two coordinators? Only time will tell, but he certainly is making an early impression on his players.

Be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the rest of the offseason and get ready for training camp in July.