Ben Roethlisberger Officially Endorses A Certain Candidate To Be The Steelers’ Next Head Coach
The most important thing for the Pittsburgh Steelers to do in the 2026 offseason is hire the right head coach to lead the franchise. That will be step one, but there are going to be a lot of other decisions that must be made. Historically, the organization has gone after young defensive-minded leaders; however, it has been nearly two decades since the team last went through this specific process. Art Rooney II will have a very important decision to make, and not every candidate that is reportedly being interviewed is going to truly excite the fan base.
Gene Puskar / Associated Press
Steelers Team President and Owner Art Rooney II stands on the field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as the team gets ready to play in a professional football game.
Many of the names linked to the Steelers have been individuals that have never had the opportunity to be a head coach before. Brian Flores and Mike McCarthy are exceptions to that. On Tuesday morning, it was reported that Pittsburgh has seriously captured the interest of McCarthy, who is from the Steel City. It would be an uncharacteristic hire because he is 62 years old, and no one is sure how much longer he could want to coach for.
While the Black and Gold faithful may not love the idea of McCarthy being hired over one of the rising individuals, the veteran offensive guru received a glowing praise and endorsement from no one other than Ben Roethlisberger. The Steelers legend said on his Footbahlin with Ben Roethlisberger podcast that he would love to get Ben Johnson, but he is set up nicely with the Chicago Bears at this time. Because of this, the future Hall of Famer wants to welcome in the hometown guy.
“My next choice would literally be Mike McCarthy,” Roethlisberger said. “Mike McCarthy is an offensive-minded veteran coach, a guy that’s been there, done that. He has Pittsburgh ties, so he understands the Steeler way and what it is to be a Steeler and understands the Rooney family and how it works, and all of that kind of stuff. A lot of respect for him.”
It wasn’t all necessarily positive, as Roethlisberger acknowledged that something that would need to be discussed would be McCarthy’s drive to coach for more than just a few years.
“The downside to potentially that is how long would he keep coaching for. Is he — would he want to do five, 10, 15 years… I don’t know.”
McCarthy has a Super Bowl under his belt and hiring him would insinuate that the front office still plans to compete right away. Some may be okay with that, while others may not be.
Smiley N. Pool / Dallas Morning News
Former Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers hugs his old Head Coach Mike McCarthy after their team won a big professional football contest.
Then, Roethlisberger continued expressing his desires for the 2026 season. He thinks it would be a good thing to hire McCarthy because, in turn, it would increase the likelihood of Aaron Rodgers coming back.
“The potential positive side to him coming in here would be the potential of Aaron Rodgers coming back, right,” Roethlisberger stated. “They have a relationship together. Now, I don’t know what the relationship is, but I’d assume it’s good enough. They won a Super Bowl together. You could bring his offense in. Aaron would know the offense; super comfortable in an offense he knows.”
Steelers fans may be more open to a slight rebuild and some rough years rather than stirring up the past between McCarthy and Rodgers. However, Roethlisberger, who is beloved by the fan base, seems to want to switch things up. A veteran coach whose focus is offense could be beneficial, at least according to the two-time Super Bowl champion.
Jordan Schofield / SteelerNation (Twitter: @JSKO_PHOTO)
Steelers retired quarterback Ben Roethlisberger (#7) runs on the field to warm up prior to a 2021 regular season game in Pittsburgh, PA.
Steelers Better Be Positive That McCarthy Is The Perfect Fit
If Pittsburgh was to bring in McCarthy, positive results would need to be seen immediately or the fan base would quickly lose faith in the organization. While it may be a good story to hire McCarthy and bring Rodgers back, the NFL is a business. If the product being put on the field is not up to par, patience will be lost, and Rooney will have to answer to millions of frustrated fans.
Do you think that the Steelers should hire McCarthy? Let us know in the comments below!
