Todd Haley will not return as Pittsburgh Steelers OC

Todd Haley is out in Pittsburgh.

The Steelers are allowing their offensive coordinator to walk, sources told NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport on Wednesday. Technically, it's not a firing as Haley's contract expired after the season, bringing his successful six-year run with the team to an end.

So what's next for the Steelers? Rapoport was told that quarterbacks coach Randy Fichtner is "considered the favorite" to replace Haley. Fichtner is close with both Roethlisberger and offensive line coach Mike Munchak, who declined a second interview for the head-coaching vacancy in Arizona.

The move comes as no great surprise, with whispers surrounding Haley's fate for weeks. The play-caller helped author some of the finest work yet from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, but the duo struggled to get along.

"The relationship has been strained so much," Rapoport noted Wednesday on NFL Network, that the Steelers were forced to bring Fichtner down to the sideline "to serve as a conduit" between Big Ben and Haley. Their union stood in sharp contrast to the one Roethlisberger shared with close friend and former coordinator Bruce Arians.

Haley's departure comes one day after Roethlisberger revealed during his radio show that he wasn't allowed to audible out of Haley's play calls, saying that rule came directly from Tomlin.

"I have asked for it. I am fine with it. If they want to call it, I'm all for it," Roethlisberger told NFL Network's Aditi Kinkhabwala.

Perhaps that will change in a post-Haley world, with Big Ben operating as one of the most experienced signal-callers league-wide.

It's unclear where Haley -- the former Chiefs coach -- will wind up, but these guys always seem to land on their feet. He'll find work soon enough.

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