The Pittsburgh Steelers lost another head coaching candidate with the Baltimore Ravens hiring Jesse Minter on Thursday. But the Steelers still have strong interest in three candidates they met this week — Brian Flores, Mike McCarthy and Anthony Weaver.
The Steelers are also likely to interview with a couple different Los Angeles Rams assistants after the NFC championship game.
However, two former NFL players, ex-wide receiver Nate Washington and ESPN’s Dan Orlovsky, are not fans of the possibility the Steelers hire McCarthy.
“While he was able to win a Lombardi in Green Bay with the Packers, I think you have to also acknowledge that he had one of the best quarterbacks in the game at the time with Aaron Rodgers,” Washington said on Mike Patton Network, via Steelers Depot’s Troy Montgomery. “Especially with the Pittsburgh Steelers, being in a position to not have a quarterback solidified, I don’t see that same possibility with him being able to go out and be great.”
Orlovsky seems to see McCarthy as having a greater chance to step in and win immediately with the Steelers. That would especially be the case if Aaron Rodgers returns to be Pittsburgh’s quarterback next season.
But that possibility is what Orlovsky dislikes so much about the idea of McCarthy coming to the Steelers.
“Hiring Mike McCarthy and bringing Aaron back would be the worst decision Pittsburgh could make,” Orlovsky said on ESPN’s Get Up. “And that is not an indictment on each of them or either of them, individually. Mike McCarthy’s a really good coach. Obviously, Aaron, one of the all-time greats.
“What are we doing Pittsburgh? To hire Mike McCarthy and bring Aaron back is going to place you, quite literally, in the same position you’re in right now in January of 2027.”
Nate Washington Suggests Mike McCarthy is Past His Prime
Washington played for both Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin with the Steelers. So, he obviously knows about what the Steelers are probably looking for in a head coach.
It’s been nearly 60 years since the Steelers hired a candidate with previous head coaching experience. The franchise would break that trend with McCarthy.
Not only has he been a head coach previously, McCarthy is just about as experienced as Tomlin. McCarthy posted a 174-112-2 record over 18 years with the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys.
Washington didn’t call the 62-year-old coach a has-been. But the former Steelers receiver argued McCarthy wouldn’t have the same upside as a young, first-time head coach.
“I have a ton of respect for what he was able to do with the Packers and Cowboys,” Washington said. “But I just don’t like it. I think there’s a situation there where we’ve seen him with two organizations, and I feel like we’ve seen his ceiling.”
Again, it might be hard for McCarthy to even reach that ceiling again without a firm plan at quarterback.
Dan Orlovsky Heavily Criticizes Steelers for Considering McCarthy-Aaron Rodgers Pairing
In Pittsburgh’s defense, the idea of the team pairing McCarthy with Rodgers is purely speculation at this point.
Yes, the Steelers interviewed McCarthy in person this week. But that likely had more to do with his prior relationship with Pittsburgh general manager Omar Khan and assistant GM Andy Weidl.
The Steelers aren’t considering McCarthy to court Rodgers away from retirement again.
Steelers team president Art Rooney II addressed the quarterback’s future in Pittsburgh during his press conference a day after Tomlin stepped down. Rooney didn’t say Rodgers definitely won’t be back but strongly suggested that would be the case.
“Aaron came here to play for Mike so I think it will most likely affect his decision,” said Rooney.
Will things change for Rodgers and the Steelers if McCarthy comes to Pittsburgh? Maybe. SNY’s Connor Hughes argued it should.
But there aren’t any Steelers insiders currently reporting the team is considering a McCarthy and Rodgers reunion.
If it were up to Washington, McCarthy wouldn’t land in Pittsburgh by himself either.
Former NFL Players Put Steelers on Notice With HC Candidate Mike McCarthy