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Whereas it formally ended on Jan. 13, Mike Tomlin’s 19-year voyage because the Pittsburgh Steelers‘ head coach began to crumble six week earlier, when scores of Steelers followers chanted for his elimination throughout a house loss to the Buffalo Payments.
These followers finally obtained what they wished when Tomlin voluntarily left his put up following Pittsburgh’s season-ending loss to the Houston Texans within the first spherical of the playoffs. After years of criticizing him, Tomlin’s detractors lastly obtained what they wished.
That is why it was ironic to see lots of those self same followers screaming to the heavens upon seeing the information that the Steelers plan to exchange Tomlin with Mike McCarthy. The fanbase, to a person, doesn’t just like the rent; they wished the Steelers to rent a younger, up-and-coming coordinator like Chuck Noll, Invoice Cowher and Mike Tomlin have been method again once they have been employed. That historical past compelled many — myself together with — to wrongfully assume that 39-year-old Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula ought to begin packing his baggage for Pittsburgh.
However as an alternative of hiring Shula (or at the least ready just a few days till they may carry him in for a go to), Steelers president Artwork Rooney II and basic supervisor Omar Khan determined to go together with McCarthy, who checks a variety of the packing containers for a Steelers franchise that has no real interest in a prolonged rebuild.
“I am undecided why you waste a 12 months of your life not attempting to contend,” Rooney mentioned previous to the beginning the teaching search. “Clearly, your roster is what it’s yearly. It modifications yearly, so that you take care of what you will have yearly and attempt to put your self ready to compete yearly. Generally you will have the horses, generally you do not. However I feel you strive yearly.”
Bingo. At 62, McCarthy absolutely has no real interest in an extended rebuild, both. That being mentioned, he most likely is not hellbent on holding the Steelers’ non-losing streak intact, which over time turned simply as a lot part of Tomlin’s legacy as the rest. Many Steelers followers have mentioned that they’d be OK with a dropping season if it helped pace up the method when it comes to being a real contender once more. McCarthy’s historical past would help this logic.
McCarthy’s Packers missed the playoffs throughout his first 12 months in Inexperienced Bay. They have been within the NFC title sport the next 12 months and can be Tremendous Bowl champions three years after that. In Dallas, McCarthy went 6-10 throughout his first 12 months on the job whereas teaching a crew that did not have Dak Prescott for many of the 12 months. With Prescott again within the fold a 12 months later, the Cowboys ripped off their first of three straight 12-win seasons. The Steelers have not gained that many video games in a season since 2020 and did so simply twice throughout Tomlin’s ultimate 15 years on the job. That run additionally included a playoff win, one thing that Steelers followers have not loved in fairly a while.
McCarthy is an offensive coach (verify), an achieved quarterback developer (verify), and has a historical past of constructing spectacular teaching staffs (his workers in Dallas, for instance, included three future head coaches in Kellen Moore, Dan Quinn and Brian Schottenheimer). Checkmate.
The proverbial cherry on prime is that McCarthy is a confirmed winner who already has expertise on the subject of teaching in cities with Texas-sized expectations. A Pittsburgh native, McCarthy clearly is aware of what he’s strolling into.
By the way in which, Cowher likes the rent.
After a seventh straight playoff losses, Steelers followers need to see their crew take the subsequent step. With a projected 12 picks on this 12 months’s draft, that would actually occur this 12 months because the Steelers will probably be in place this offseason to handle most of their roster wants, beginning at receiver.
Quarterback is clearly the principle space the Steelers want to handle. However the odds of the Steelers discovering their subsequent longterm quarterback this offseason are slim, given the place they presently are within the draft (with the twenty first general choose) and the dearth of potential choices through commerce or free company. It’s a barren 12 months, actually. That implies that the Steelers are probably focusing on 2027 as they 12 months that they hope to seek out their longterm resolution at quarterback, the place the draft class is significantly better and ups the potential of discovering a franchise QB within the teenagers or 20s.
What does that imply for 2026? It implies that, as Rooney alluded to above, the Steelers will attempt to contend as they at all times do, however they probably will not have the horses to essentially sniff a Tremendous Bowl this 12 months. With that in thoughts, the Steelers’ ceiling will as soon as once more be a playoff win, one thing that turned the norm throughout Tomlin’s ultimate seasons. The ground, nonetheless, could possibly be a lot decrease than it has been lately.
The Steelers broke the Cowboys’ NFL file for consecutive non-losing seasons in 2025. The Steelers will not deliberately attempt to finish their file this 12 months, however McCarthy’s historical past means that Pittsburgh could also be in for a dropping season if they do not have a succesful quarterback in place. A dropping file would assist when it comes to getting a excessive draft choose, however, Rooney made clear, the Steelers will not purposely “waste” a season as a way to elevate their draft inventory.
This brings us to Aaron Rodgers and whether or not he can be involved in a reunion together with his former Packers coach. Whereas it is perhaps a stretch to say that this performed a major function in McCarthy getting the job, it most likely did not damage, both.
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Anybody who watched Rodgers this previous 12 months is aware of that he nonetheless has his golden proper arm. Whereas his mobility is at a premium, Rodgers nonetheless has sufficient instruments in his toolbox to be a high quality beginning quarterback, even at 42.
Positive, he and the offense had some ugly outings, nevertheless it was laborious to determine how a lot of the blame ought to fall on Rodgers (exterior of his eagerness to do away with the ball rapidly, which is undoubtedly on account of the truth that he is 42), given the dearth of weaponry he had at receiver and a few of the curious play-calling from Arthur Smith that usually did not contain the utilization of a few of Pittsburgh’s greatest ability gamers, akin to gone-missing tight finish Pat Freiermuth.
Whereas the Steelers need to contend yearly, they absolutely know that they will not actually take the subsequent step till they discover a longterm beginning quarterback. If they are not going to seek out him this offseason in a nasty quarterback draft, it actually would not matter who the quarterback is that this season. And past what he does on the sphere, a Rodgers reunion would most likely have extra advantages from an intangibles standpoint.
Steelers gamers weren’t shy throughout the season — and reportedly throughout exit interviews — how how a lot they loved enjoying with Rodgers and would welcome him again. If McCarthy can play a job in that taking place, it could actually assist win over a locker room that was fiercely loyal to Tomlin.
Management is among the most important traits Rooney mentioned that was is in search of Pittsburgh’s new coach. McCarthy’s program and tradition led to a championship in Inexperienced Bay and extra success with the Cowboys, and there is not any cause to suppose that he will not do the identical factor in Pittsburgh. Rooney clearly feels that method after making up his thoughts this weekend as an alternative of ready to have in-person interviews with Shula and/or Rams go sport coordinator Nate Scheelhaase.
Talking of younger coaches, it would not be a shock if McCarthy’s teaching workers contains his potential substitute. If he is ready to determine a potential coach-in-waiting, that might probably quell some the fanbase who do not like the truth that the Steelers employed an older coach.
McCarthy will not have a tenure in Pittsburgh that rivals his predecessors when it comes to size. He can nonetheless make a long-lasting mark on his hometown crew, although, if he capable of assist finish their drought of playoff wins, discover and develop their subsequent longterm quarterback and arrange his eventual successor up for much more success.
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