Steelers Hire Mike McCarthy to be Their Next Head Coach
Following a small round of in-person interviews that included Brian Flores, Anthony Weaver, and Mike McCarthy, the Pittsburgh Steelers have decided to hire Mike McCarthy as their next head coach, only their fourth since 1969.
Guys, full disclosure: I’ve been snowed in for the last several days, and I could’ve shared my thoughts on this at any point throughout the weekend. In truth, I was hoping that a few days' rest would change my tone up a bit, because I don’t wanna come on here and sound like a hater, but I fear my general mood about the hiring process hasn’t changed. Further context, perhaps necessary: I’m a certified, badge-wearing, lifelong Cowboys hater. I digress. Here we go -
I couldn’t be more disappointed by this entire process, to be honest. I did a 2,000+ word post on this platform where I mentioned everyone that the Steelers had interviewed thus far. Of those 2,033 words, I dedicated a mere 99 words to Mike McCarthy, and wrapped it up (quickly) with this: “...it would be ludicrous, in my opinion, to hire Mike McCarthy right now.” I’ll be so real with yinz…I didn’t think this was a possibility at all. Shame on me, I guess.
Mike McCarthy is an offensive minded coach that has a knack for getting the best out of his quarterbacks. He also brings 18 years of experience as a head coach in Green Bay and Dallas, and he is 62 years of age, whereas his three predecessors were young defensive coordinators, aged 37, 34, and 34 - needless to say, Mike McCarthy is quite the departure from their previous hiring cycles. So why does this still feel like a lateral move?
Mike McCarthy DSRS (Pro Football Reference)
Mike Tomlin OSRS (Pro Football Reference)
Using Pro Football Reference’s simple rating system, we can see that in Mike Tomlin’s 19 years as head coach, he oversaw an offense that was below league average in nine of those seasons, including each of the last five seasons dating back to 2020. In Mike McCarthy’s 18 years as head coach, he oversaw a defense that was below league average in nine of those seasons. McCarthy has a 174-122(.608) regular season record as a head coach, compared to Tomlin’s 193-114 (.628). In the postseason, McCarthy is 11-11 with one Super Bowl win, compared to Tomlin’s 8-12 with one Super Bowl win. Simply put, both of these coaches found a lot of success early on in their careers, and they both have a proven track record of raising the floor of their group(s), particularly in the regular season. Between the both of them, however, they have a combined one (1) postseason win since 2016.
That, my friends, feels like a near-perfect lateral in my opinion. Obviously, fans are disgusted by this process, and I’m inclined to join them. It seems we’ve all come out in unison wondering the same thing: why was Art Rooney II so gung-ho about hiring Mike McCarthy right now? By all accounts, he really liked Chris Shula from the Rams, and if he would’ve waited just another few days, he could’ve completed interviews with both Shula and Nate Scheelhaase. Maybe you’re not sold on either of those guys, but should he not, at least, do his due diligence and talk to everyone before filling a position of need for the first time in two decades? - Like…who was the team out there that you were competing with for Mike McCarthy’s services? The Titans? It makes no sense.
Even as I say that, though, it makes perfect sense. Art Rooney II had no interest in hiring a head coach in the calendar year 2026. He was clearly blindsided by Mike Tomlin stepping down, and he’s most interested in remaining competitive during what is a rebuild, even if Rooney refuses to believe it. Odds are, they’ll express a lot of interest in bringing back Rodgers for another season, and I’ll be blogging about another disappointing season in the calendar year 2027. A vicious cycle.
When Mike Tomlin stepped down, a part of my childhood died a little bit, and I was willing to accept that when I thought that the Steelers would interview everyone, and take risks, and choose to really try and catch up with the times. Instead, they chose the “safe” route with the high floor and a low ceiling, and now, not only are we going to be mediocre, but we don’t even have the cool, likeable guy that everyone wants to play for anymore. I’ll flip to a more positive tone moving forward, because I love the Pittsburgh Steelers, and I’m in it for the long haul, regardless of who’s at the helm, but this is as uninspired a hiring as they could’ve had, and I’m just flat-out sad about it.
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