Mike McCarthy and the Pittsburgh Steelers will not be retaining defensive backs coach Gerald Alexander after all.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Saturday the Minnesota Vikings are hiring Alexander to their staff under defensive coordinator Brian Flores. Alexander will be Minnesota’s defensive pass game coordinator and defensive backs coach.
Alexander coached in Pittsburgh for three seasons over two different stints.
Daronte Jones left to be Commanders DC.
Alexander is notably joining Flores’s staff in Minnesota. The Steelers interviewed Flores for their head coach opening before hiring McCarthy.
Alexander worked under the Vikings defensive coordinator from 2020-21 when Flores was the Miami Dolphins head coach.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac reported Wednesday that McCarthy “expected to bring back” three assistants from Mike Tomlin’s final staff. Alexander was one of those three assistants.
Mike McCarthy Losing Defensive Assistant Gerald Alexander: Report
ESPN’s Brooke Pryor was the first to report on Friday that Alexander could forgo remaining with the Steelers to head to Minnesota.
“McCarthy could also target secondary coach Gerland Alexander as a coach to retain, but he’s expected to have interest in joining Brian Flores’ defensive staff in Minnesota, sources told ESPN,” wrote Pryor.
Although it wasn’t technically a done deal, before Pryor’s report, the expectation was Alexander was staying in Pittsburgh.
Alexander has left the Steelers previously for a superior job title. He served as Steelers assistant defensive backs coach from 2022-23. Ironically, Alexander worked with Flores a second time during that stint.
Flores was a senior defensive assistant in Pittsburgh during 2022 before landing the Vikings defensive coordinator job.
In 2024, Alexander departed to coach safeties with the Las Vegas Raiders. He returned to be the Steelers defensive backs coach in 2025.
Of the three assistants Dulac reported were expected to transition from Tomlin to McCarthy in Pittsburgh, Alexander was the only one who hadn’t previously coached with McCarthy. But on Friday, the Steelers officially hired Patrick Graham as defensive coordinator.
Graham was the Raiders defensive coordinator from 2022-25. So, Alexander coached under Graham for a season in 2024.
But instead of continuing that relationship, Alexander elected to coach again with Flores. In Minnesota, he will also have two roles as pass game coordinator and defensive backs coach.
Steelers Still Set to Retain Two Coaches Under McCarthy
While they could still jump to another team as Alexander is doing, all indications are the other two assistants McCarthy expected to retain will be back with the Steelers.
Those two assistants are linebackers coach Scott McCurley and quarterbacks coach Tom Arth.
McCurley coached under McCarthy for his entire head coaching tenure with the Green Bay Packers. McCurley was also on the Dallas Cowboys staff when McCarthy was the head coach.
In 2025, Tomlin hired McCurley after the Cowboys fired McCarthy.
Arth had a much briefer encounter with the Steelers new head coach, but it came nearly 20 years ago in 2006. Arth was a practice squad quarterback for the Packers in McCarthy’s first season with Green Bay.
Arth has been Pittsburgh’s quarterbacks coach the past two seasons. Keeping him on staff will allow second-year signal-caller Will Howard to have the same position coach.
Although Aaron Rodgers has a previous relationship with Pittsburgh’s new head coach, Arth will also provide continuity if the Steelers bring back the veteran quarterback.
Steelers Losing Assistant Mike McCarthy Expected to Retain: Report