Some Pittsburgh Steelers still have to warm up to new head coach Mike McCarthy. But two Steelers players made clear this week they are excited about what the new era of Pittsburgh football under McCarthy will bring.
Starting edge rusher Alex Highsmith, who attended McCarthy’s introductory press conference Tuesday, and long snapper Christian Kuntz expressed why they are looking forward to playing for the new Steelers coach.
“I got to meet him yesterday. I got to talk to him a little bit, so I’m gonna talk to him here again soon. But I’m really excited for it,” Highsmith said on the newest episode of The Christian Kuntz podcast, via Steelers Depot’s Josh Carney. “He’s a Pittsburgh guy. He’s a Yinzer. So, just the passion that he has for this city, for the organization, for the Steelers, I think is something that is really awesome.
“So I’m just excited to get to work with him, and so it’s just to see what the future has planned, but I’m excited for it.
“It’s definitely gonna be different because all I’ve known since I’ve been in the league is Mike T. It’s gonna be different, but I’m excited for what’s ahead.”
Kuntz echoed those comments, saying he is “fired up” to play for McCarthy.
Mike McCarthy Returning Home to Coach Steelers
After winning four Super Bowls over 23 years with Chuck Noll, the Steelers replaced the legendary coach with Bill Cowher.
History is repeating itself. Cowher grew up in Pittsburgh. In McCarthy, the Steelers have hired another local product to replace the previously longest-tenured coach in the league, Mike Tomlin.
In his introductory press conference Tuesday, McCarthy grew very emotional talking about what Pittsburgh and the Steelers have meant to him in his life.
“Oftentimes, coaches and player, you put on a new team colors, and it takes a minute to feel comfortable in those new colors,” McCarthy said. “But to be blessed beyond any measure one day to put on the colors you wore since you brought home when you come home from Mercy Hospital …
“This city, this franchise, this fan base means the world to me because Pittsburgh’s my world, and it’s just awesome to be back here.”
One of McCarthy’s first coaching jobs was with Pitt. He served as a Pitt Panthers graduate assistant from 1989-1991. In 1992, he held his first position coaching role as wide receivers coach for the Panthers.
McCarthy began his NFL coaching career with the Kansas City Chiefs the following season. The 2026 campaign will be his first with the Steelers, which is the NFL team he grew up admiring in the 1970s.
McCarthy’s Pittsburgh Passion Leaves Highsmith, Kuntz Impressed
McCarthy’s opening presser wasn’t just about a coming home party. The head coach addressed Aaron Rodgers’s future, his philosophy on developing quarterbacks and the timeline for hiring assistants.
But clearly, McCarthy’s words about how much the Steelers and Pittsburgh mean to him stroke a chord with Highsmith and Kuntz.
“His opening remark, he just looked like he was like a kid on Christmas, and then what he said about going to a different team, and it takes a little bit. I haven’t experienced that, you haven’t experienced that,” Kuntz said to Highsmith on the podcast. “But you go to a new team and you gotta experience and get comfortable wearing the new colors.
“When you’re blessed beyond measure and you get to wear the same colors that you came home in from Mercy Hospital, that gave me goosebumps … And he was crying. That’s life changing. That was cool.”
Steelers Starter & Key Contributor Speak out on Playing for Mike McCarthy