The Detroit Lions now have a sixth offensive coordinator candidate made public. According to Ian Rapoport, the Lions have put out a request to interview Arthur Smith, the offensive coordinator for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Smith was a long-time coach within the Tennessee Titans organization. He started as a defensive quality control coach with the team in 2011, worked his way up to offensive line and tight ends coach before become the team’s offensive coordinator in 2019-20. Those two seasons, the Titans produced the 10th and fourth-highest scoring offenses in the league, spearheaded by quarterback Ryan Tannehill and running back Derrick Henry. In 2019, Tannehill led the NFL with a 117.5 passer rating and 9.7 yards per attempt. In 2020, Henry led the NFL in rushing yards with 2,027.
Smith was then hired to be the Atlanta Falcons’ head coach, where he failed to replicate his success with the Titans. The Falcons never finished higher than 17th in points scored in his three seasons, and the Falcons went just 21-30 under Smith—producing a 7-10 season in all three years.
Since then, he’s served as the Steelers’ offensive coordinator for the past two years. Pittsburgh ranked 16th in points scored in 2024 and 15th in 2025. With Mike Tomlin out as Steelers head coach, Smith’s future is uncertain.
UPDATE: Per Steelers reporter Nick Farabaugh, Smith still has one year left on his contract with the Steelers, meaning Pittsburgh could block this interview request, but the team is not likely to do so.
This coaching cycle, Smith has been requested for two head coaching interviews: for the Cardinals and Titans jobs.
You can check out the entire list of the Lions’ offensive coordinator candidates—as well as any other potential coaching changes coming for the Lions with our 2026 tracker.
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