By Ray Porter Jr. for Urban Media Today
The Pittsburgh Steelers have found their next head coach.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, 11 days after iconic and future Hall of Fame coach Mike Tomlin stepped down, the Steelers have agreed to hire Mike McCarthy as their next head coach. McCarthy, a Greenfield native and Pittsburgh-area product, becomes only the franchise’s fourth head coach since 1969 and the 17th head coach in team history.
According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac, the Steelers and McCarthy agreed to a five-year contract on Saturday.
McCarthy, 62, brings extensive NFL head coaching experience, owning a 174–112–2 regular-season record and an 11–11 postseason mark. He previously served as head coach of the Green Bay Packers (2006–2018), where he won Super Bowl XLV, defeating the Steelers 31–25 with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback. McCarthy later coached the Dallas Cowboys from 2020 to 2024.
His hiring marks a notable departure from recent franchise tradition. McCarthy becomes the first Steelers head coach with prior NFL head coaching experience since Mike Nixon in 1965, and the first head coach from the Pittsburgh area since Hall of Famer Bill Cowher, who was born in Crafton and led the team from 1992 to 2006.
McCarthy also has deep local ties, having served as a graduate assistant at the University of Pittsburgh under then-head coach Paul Hackett from 1989 to 1991.
He inherits a Steelers team coming off a 10–7 season and its first AFC North division title since 2020, though the franchise has not won a playoff game since 2016.
McCarthy’s arrival has already fueled speculation about a potential reunion with Aaron Rodgers, who spent the 2025 season with the Steelers on a one-year deal after enjoying a successful partnership with McCarthy in Green Bay.
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