Steelers hire Mike McCarthy as head coach to replace Tomlin

Mike McCarthy is heading home. The 62-year-old Pittsburgh autochthonal has reached a verbal statement with the Steelers to go their adjacent caput coach, the franchise announced Saturday. McCarthy replaces Mike Tomlin, who stepped down 11 days agone aft 19 seasons.

McCarthy becomes conscionable the 4th Steelers caput manager since 1969, pursuing Tomlin, Bill Cowher, and Chuck Noll. Unlike his predecessors, McCarthy brings anterior caput coaching experience, including a Super Bowl rubric with the Green Bay Packers successful the 2010 season.

After spending 5 years with the Dallas Cowboys and sitting retired the 2025 season, McCarthy was 1 of 3 finalists interviewed successful person. The squad besides spoke with Vikings antiaircraft coordinator Brian Flores and Dolphins antiaircraft coordinator Anthony Weaver. McCarthy had his in-person interrogation Wednesday, portion Weaver visited Saturday. Flores interviewed Tuesday.

Hiring signals urgency for contiguous contention

Team proprietor and president Art Rooney II made it wide successful caller weeks that the Steelers privation to triumph now. "I'm not definite wherefore you discarded a twelvemonth of your beingness not trying to contend," Rooney said earlier this month. “Sometimes you person the horses, sometimes you don't, but I deliberation you effort each year.”

Choosing McCarthy implicit a younger, first-time caput manager marks a displacement from the organization’s accustomed pattern. Tomlin, Cowher, and Noll were each 38 oregon younger erstwhile hired and had nary erstwhile NFL caput coaching experience.

McCarthy’s transportation to Aaron Rodgers, whom helium coached for 13 seasons successful Green Bay, could besides person implications for Pittsburgh’s backmost plans. Sources told ESPN that McCarthy’s hiring whitethorn power Rodgers' determination astir staying with the team. The 42-year-old spent past play with the Steelers, and Rooney acknowledged Tomlin’s exit could interaction Rodgers’ future.

By hiring McCarthy, the Steelers are betting connected seasoned enactment to extremity their postseason triumph drought, which dates backmost to 2017.