He doesn’t exactly fit the mold of young, up-and-coming coordinator, particularly on the defensive side of the football, but former Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys head coach and Pittsburgh native Mike McCarthy has emerged as a “strong candidate” for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ head coaching position.
That is according to a report from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero Tuesday morning.
Super Bowl-winning coach Mike McCarthy will interview Wednesday with the Steelers, per sources.
McCarthy was a candidate for the Titans before withdrawing Monday morning and has turned down other inquiries. He’s focused on Pittsburgh, where he’s considered a strong candidate. pic.twitter.com/jJBPWCp4Sv
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) January 20, 2026
Reports over the weekend stated that McCarthy was set to interview for the job, joining a list of nine names following the resignation from Mike Tomlin after 19 years less than 24 hours after the Steelers’ Wild Card loss to the Houston Texans.
Now, according to Pelissero, McCarthy is set to interview with the Steelers on Wednesday. The interview comes after McCarthy reportedly withdrew himself from the interview process with the Tennessee Titans and turned down other head coaching inquiries, turning his attention to the Steelers and the opening in his hometown.
McCarthy spent 13 years as the Packers’ head coach from 2006-18 and then was the head coach of the Cowboys from 2019-2024, compiling a career record of 174-112-2, which includes a win over the Steelers in Super Bowl XLV.
In his 18 seasons as an NFL head coach, McCarthy has won double-digit games in 11 seasons, and has 11 wins in the playoffs, too.
He won that Super Bowl over the Steelers with Aaron Rodgers at quarterback, so McCarthy as a candidate to be the Steelers’ next head coach could keep the door ajar for Rodgers to return to Pittsburgh for a second season. Steelers players reportedly made the case during exit interviews for Rodgers to be brought back for another season, but it remains to be seen if the 42-year-old quarterback wants to play in 2026, let alone return to the Steelers without Mike Tomlin at the helm.
Appearing on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football Tuesday to discuss McCarthy, Pelissero says McCarty in Pittsburgh is a “real consideration” for the opening.
“McCarthy is a Pittsburgh native and coached, of course, the Cowboys for five years. Made the playoffs several times there. Before taking this year off, McCarthy was a candidate in Tennessee before he withdrew his name Monday morning. They ended up hiring Robert Saleh instead. Other teams have inquired, but McCarthy is focused on Pittsburgh, where I’m told he is considered a strong candidate,” Pelissero said of McCarthy, according to video via NFL Network. “You look at the other coaches across the league, there’s only two active head coaches who have more playoff wins than Mike McCarthy. It’s Andy Reid and John Harbaugh, who of course just got hired by the New York Giants. McCarthy’s resume stacks up very similarly to the likes of Sean Peyton, and the guy who just was in Pittsburgh in Mike Tomlin.
“Expect this to be a real consideration, though it would certainly veer from the Steelers history of hiring young, defensive-minded head coaches.”
A native of Greenfield, just outside of Pittsburgh, McCarthy has been around the block a time or two in the NFL. Outside of the historic connection with the Steelers dating back to Super Bowl XLV and being a born-and-bred Yinzer, McCarthy doesn’t have any real strong ties to the organization.
McCarthy did overlap with Steelers GM Omar Khan in New Orleans in the 2000 season where he served as the Saints’ offensive coordinator, but the was 26 years ago. He also has ties to linebackers coach Scott McCurley, though that’s less notable at the moment.
At 62 years old, McCarthy wouldn’t fit the mold the Steelers are thought to be looking for when it comes to their next head coach as he’s at the tail end of his career. Plus, he took a full year off from coaching after not having his contract renewed in Dallas.
Of course, with an older core of players, maybe the Steelers envision taking one more swing at it, bringing Rodgers back and trying to figure out quarterback in 2027 with McCarthy still at the helm. But it’s a bit of a surprise to see McCarthy’s name emerge as a “strong candidate” for the Steelers’ opening.
He joins Brian Flores as two names generating buzz for the opening in Pittsburgh.
