National Football League

Steelers' Zierlein out as offensive line coach

Published Jan. 7, 2010 1:39 a.m. ET

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Offensive line coach Larry Zierlein has been fired, the first Steelers assistant coach to lose his job since coach Mike Tomlin was hired in 2007.

Zierlein was supposed to meet with some of his linemen on Wednesday, only to be told he was being replaced. He was seen leaving the Steelers' offices with several large boxes. Zierlein previously coached for the Browns and Bills, plus five college teams.

Offensive coordinator Bruce Arians held a long meeting Wednesday with Tomlin and is expected to retain his job, despite some dissatisfaction within the organization about the decreased emphasis on the running game.

Zierlein's offensive line had season-long problems, allowing Ben Roethlisberger to be sacked 50 times as the Steelers (9-7) failed to make the playoffs a season after winning the Super Bowl.

The staff change was the second in as many days after Tomlin went three seasons without altering his staff. Quarterbacks coach Ken Anderson retired on Tuesday after 33 seasons as an NFL player or coach, 16 as a Bengals quarterback.

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