Arthur Smith focused on Steelers with Titans wanting to interview him for head coach

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith confirmed Thursday that the Tennessee Titans have reached out to interview him for their head coach opening.

“That’s not something I’m going to focus on because the only thing that matters is my current job,” Smith said. “It’s like trying to tell people all the time, I’m living the present. If you have perspective, you have life experiences, you’re wasting time worrying about the future if you deal with that. ... Anything’s like that’s a distraction.”

Smith coached for the Titans from 2011 when he started as a quality control assistant up to offensive coordinator in 2019, working under four different head coaches. He left after the 2020 season to be head coach of the Atlanta Falcons where he went 21-30 in three seasons.

He has been coordinator with the Steelers the past two seasons. He can't i nterview with his former team until three days after Pittsburgh's wild-card game Monday night against Houston, and that interview would be done virtually if the Steelers win.

“All my focus is on our guys, these guys, and anything I take away from that is not doing my job,” Smith said. "So all I care about is the Steelers and our players.”

Smith has other ties to Tennessee. His father was the late FedEx founder Fred Smith.

The Titans, the first team this season to fire its coach on Oct. 13, now are among eight NFL teams looking to hire a new coach. They reportedly also requested interviews with two other coordinators busy in the playoffs including Green Bay defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley and San Francisco defensive coordinator Robert Saleh.

General manager Mike Borgonzi said Tuesday he had no timeline to hire the right person, and the number of men reported as candidates Tennessee has asked for permission to talk with or scheduled interviews with now has reached 11.

Hafley said Wednesday that having his name being mentioned as a head coaching candidate is flattering and humbling. The Packers are preparing for a wild-card game Saturday night in Chicago.

“I’m just honored to be in those. I think right now with all that stuff, it can be a distraction,” Hafley said.

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AP Sports Writers Will Graves in Pittsburgh and Steve Megargee in Wisconsin contributed to this report.

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