Taken from the notebook of a blogger who is ordering a main course of crow, followed by a healthy slice of humble pie for dessert. But before he can settle down to his meal, he must first of course wipe the egg off of his face because….
- The Pittsburgh Steelers announced yesterday that Mike Tomlin has hired former New York Giants wide receiver Ike Hilliard has his new wide receivers coach.
New Steelers wide receivers coach Ike Hilliard being tackled by James Farrior in 2004. Photo Credit: Twitter
About ten days ago Dale Lolley of DK Sports Pittsburgh and Joe Rutter of the Tribune-Review reported that the Steelers had hired South Carolina’s offensive coordinator Bryan McClendon as their wideouts coach. Steel Curtain Rising, along with numerous other outlets, took the bait and announced the news.
Gerry Dulac and Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette quickly cautioned that the hire had not been made, and that the Steelers were interviewing other candidates, including Jerricho Cotchery.
Not so fast…Steelers still
interviewing candidates for WR coach. https://t.co/zdhydDqrDr via @PittsburghPG— Gerry Dulac (@gerrydulac) February 10, 2020
It turns out that Dulac was right, and this incident serves as a lesson that the quick and easy “content aggregation” path can just as easily lead you, and your readers, in the wrong direction.
Hilliard Follows Road Well-Traveled
The New York Giants made Ike Hilliard their first-round draft pick of the 1997 NFL Draft, and he spent eight seasons in the Big Apple followed by four more in Tampa Bay. He retired in 2008 and went into coaching.
He broke into coaching with the Dolphins, initiating a series of one year stints in Miami, Washington and Buffalo. In 2014 Jay Gruden asked him to return to the Redskins staff, where Hilliard has remained for the last 5 years.
While 2019 was a particularly brutal year for the Redskins, one undisputed bright spot was the emergence of rookie wide out Terry McLaurin. Under Hilliard’s tutelage, McLaurin led the Redskins with 58 catches for 919 yards and seven touchdowns.
- This is a positive sign for a Steelers offense in desperate need of play makers.
Hilliard’s mentorship figures to be critical to the development of Diontae Johnson and James Washington. He could even help JuJu Smith-Schuster turn the corner and solidify his place as a true number 1 wide receiver, just as Richard Mann helped Antonio Brown cement that role following Mike Wallace’s departure.
Ike Hilliard replaces Ray Sherman, who stepped in as interim wide receivers coach last summer, following the death of Daryl Drake.
