Mike McCarthy will reportedly don a new shade of yellow as the newly minted head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The Pittsburgh Steelers still like Mike.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the black-and-yellow will name Mike McCarthy as its new head coach, succeeding Mike Tomlin in the vaunted spot. McCarthy is only the fourth Steelers head coach since 1969, joining Tomlin, Chuck Noll, and Bill Cowher.
McCarthy, 62, is best known for his lasting tenure as head coach of the Green Bay Packers, where he stood at the helm for a dozen-plus seasons. He amassed a 125-77-2 record with the Pack and stands as the franchise’s all-time leader in postseason victories with 10. McCarthy wore the top headset when the Packers, ironically enough, downed the Steelers in Super Bowl XLV in North Texas.
McCarthy took last season off after a rollercoaster tenure leading the Dallas Cowboys. America’s Team posted a 49-35 record with McCarthy leading the way yet won but one playoff game. In addition to his time as a head coach, McCarthy has held various assistant coaching gigs since entering the NFL in 1993.
We have verbally agreed for Mike McCarthy to become our next head coach. pic.twitter.com/oOqZPRm7aX
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) January 24, 2026
Pittsburgh, known for its lack of lengthy turnarounds, presents a new challenge for McCarthy: the Steelers bid farewell to Tomlin after 19 tours, none of which ended with a losing record. Despite his success, Pittsburgh has not won a playoff game since 2016 and has not been in the Super Bowl since that aforementioned futile fracas with the Packers. Tomlin’s watch ended with an AFC North title but also a 30-6 loss to the Houston Texans in the wild-card round.
McCarthy’s offensive prowess will likely be called upon to fix a dormant Steeler offense: Pittsburgh has been a playoff staple despite some stagnant showings, as it has ranked no better than 23rd in yardage in any of the past seven seasons and hasn’t been in the top 10 in scoring since 2018.
Steelers did not hire Mike McCarthy to lure back Aaron Rodgers; but it is not expected to hurt Pittsburgh’s chances as the future Hall-Of-Fame QB decides whether or not he wants to play next season. pic.twitter.com/Lip7OuQr2Q
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 24, 2026
Of course, McCarthy’s entry will no doubt draw the attention of the incumbent Pittsburgh quarterback Aaron Rodgers. In Green Bay, McCarthy’s up-and-down relationship with Rodgers frequently made headlines. McCarthy arrived in Green Bay one season after Rodgers’ 2005 drafting and Rodgers was the MVP of their shared championship.
Rodgers has not made a decision about returning for a 22nd NFL season. If he opts for retirement, McCarthy and the Steelers could well use the 21st pick of the upcoming draft on a franchise thrower.
It will be a homecoming for McCarthy, who was born in Pittsburgh. He went to Bishop Boyle High School along the Monongahela River, a mere eight miles from the Steelers’ home. McCarthy has coached in his home town previously as both a graduate assistant and receivers coach at the University of Pittsburgh.
With McCarthy’s reported hire, the league’s lingering coaching vacancies now reside in Arizona, Buffalo, Cleveland, and Las Vegas.
Geoff Magliocchetti is on X @GeoffJMags
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