He was seemingly more expansive and more enthusiastic in talking about the defense he was inheriting and the significance of that side of the ball.
“I’m really excited about the defense, great seeing Alex here,” McCarthy said, recognizing outside linebacker Alex Highsmith among those in attendance at the PNC Champions Club at Acrisure. “The history of the Steelers defense and staying with the 3-4 is important as far as the origin of it, and that’s something we can build off.
“I’ve been a head coach 18 years, I’ve had one Top 5 defense, and we won a Super Bowl that year. The importance of defense is critical.”
That Super Bowl season in Green Bay was in 2010, when the Packers had the NFL’s No. 2 total defense and beat the Steelers, 31-25, in Super Bowl XLV.
The Steelers had finished No. 1 in total defense that season.
“We definitely want to build off what’s in place here,” McCarthy continued. “With this being the third organization that I’ve walked into the first day, I don’t believe in the throw-out-the-baby-with-the-bath-water method. I believe in building off what’s in place and there’s a lot here in place.
“The defensive system has been here since 1992. It came here with Coach Cowher (head coach Bill) and (defensive coordinator) Dom Capers. I’ve always been a fan of it. I always thought it was the toughest one to compete against as an offensive coach, part of the reason I went to it in Green Bay.
“We’re putting the staff together but ideally we want to keep the language the same. Those are big decisions when you come in here because when you have something that works the way it’s worked here for so long, I think you should try to do everything you can to build off that, if possible.”