The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a busy start to the offseason, to say the least. After suffering an ugly loss to the Houston Texans in the wild-card round of the playoffs, longtime head coach Mike Tomlin abruptly resigned from his post with the team. As a result, the Steelers had to move quickly to find a replacement for Tomlin.
Over the past couple of weeks, Pittsburgh has conducted a thorough head coach search, and it appears it is narrowing down its list of candidates. According to several reports, it sounds like Miami Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver has emerged as the frontrunner, but a surprising development could lead the Steelers to miss out on him entirely.
Anthony Weaver Set for Second Interview with Cardinals
Weaver, the former NFL defensive end who most recently was Miami’s DC, is interviewing with the Bills today. He also is a finalist for the Steelers HC job.
Whoever replaces Tomlin is going to have a tall task ahead of them, given all that he accomplished during his lengthy stint with the team. Based on who the team has interviewed for the opening, it seems like they are prioritizing a defensive-minded coach, which is why Weaver has become such a desirable option for them.
Weaver has spent time with several different teams throughout his rise in the coaching ranks, which led him to his current gig with the Dolphins. Despite being dealt a pretty poor hand when it comes to the makeup of Miami’s defense in 2025, Weaver helped the unit put together a respectable season, which has earned him serious consideration as a head coach candidate across the league.
With the Steelers cutting down their list of candidates, they are rumored to be very high on Weaver. However, Pittsburgh isn’t alone when it comes to its pursuit of Weaver. Not only is he set to interview for the Buffalo Bills opening on Saturday, but he also has a second interview with the Arizona Cardinals for their head coach vacancy on Sunday.
“The Cardinals are bringing in Anthony Weaver on Sunday for a second interview for their head coaching job, per sources,” Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported in a post on X. “Weaver, the former NFL defensive end who most recently was Miami’s DC, is interviewing with the Bills today. He also is a finalist for the Steelers HC job.”
Did the Steelers Miss Their Chance to Hire Anthony Weaver?
Nick Cammett/Getty ImagesPittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan looks on prior to a game against the Cleveland Browns on September 22, 2022.
Right now, it seems like Weaver may be the most popular head coach candidate left standing. While he missed out on the Baltimore Ravens job, there are still several teams that are very clearly interested in hiring him. The Steelers are an attractive landing spot, but it’s fair to wonder if the team missed its opportunity to bring him aboard.
Weaver doesn’t seem intent on making a split decision when it comes to his coaching future, so he will likely meet with the Cardinals and then take some time before figuring out what his next steps are. At this point, it seems like Pittsburgh is waiting on Weaver, which makes his upcoming meeting with Arizona very important when it comes to the team’s head coach search.
Steelers Could Lose Top Head Coach Target to Cardinals