Tuesday was the big day. For the first time since 2007, the Pittsburgh Steelers introduced a new head coach. Mike McCarthy is the 17th head coach in franchise history and as he said in his emotional opening statement, his aim is to add a seventh Lombardi to the trophy case.<\/p>\n
What kind of first impression did McCarthy make? Here are my thoughts.<\/p>\n
\u2013 Small stuff to start with. Lot of fans don\u2019t realize McCarthy is the 17th head coach in Steelers\u2019 history. I received comments on the website and Twitter\/X questioning McCarthy being No. 17. While he\u2019s only the fourth since 1969, the Steelers went through coaches like socks prior to Chuck Noll\u2019s arrival. Remember, this is a franchise that\u2019s been playing football for nearly 100 years.<\/p>\n
\u2013 The presser felt\u00a0short. At least by introductory standards. The recapped version on the team YouTube channel clocked in at 30:33.<\/a> Just for fun, here\u2019s how other teams compare.<\/p>\n Jeff Hafley: 58 minutes Robert Saleh, Jesse Minter, and Joe Brady have yet to have theirs with a few spots still open. We\u2019ll see how they compare. In fairness, Hafley and Stefanski\u2019s meetings had others to introduce, GM Jon-Eric Sullivan in Miami and Matt Ryan in Atlanta, but Art Rooney II and Omar Khan also spoke during yesterday\u2019s meeting. A half-hour is a slightly longer-than-normal Mike Tomlin presser (though his own intro presser<\/a> came in at just 21 minutes).<\/p>\n It\u2019s not a critique but for an event that happens once every two decades, it went a little quicker than I expected.<\/p>\n \u2013 Reading prepared remarks, McCarthy could barely begin speaking without getting emotional. It\u2019s clear this opportunity means a lot to him. A hometown kid getting to coach his hometown team is uncommon, even if two of the team\u2019s last three head coaches hail from the region.<\/p>\n In his introductory Dallas press conference in 2020, McCarthy\u2019s initial remarks focused on how big and grand the Cowboys\u2019 facility was.<\/a> How everything was state-of-the-art. In Pittsburgh, the message wasn\u2019t about glitz and glam. It was about coming home.<\/p>\n Good on McCarthy for feeling like he could express how he really felt. All coaches work hard but doing it for your hometown team gives it special meaning.<\/p>\n \u2013 I was surprised McCarthy gave such a candid and absolute answer about Aaron Rodgers. You knew the question was coming and it was the second one he got. I expected him to leave the door open.\u00a0Love Aaron, really good player, he has a decision to make so we\u2019ll see what happens. Instead, he said without hesitation or reservation he \u201cdefinitely\u201d wants him back.\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n Now, the ball is in Aaron Rodgers\u2019 court. If Rooney does his offseason media tour, I wonder if he\u2019s asked if he feels just as strongly.<\/p>\n \u2013 At one point, McCarthy punted an answer on Rodgers\u2019 timeline and how long Pittsburgh might wait, offering it to Khan. But Khan didn\u2019t answer and the presser moved on to the next question. That felt intentional and notable. Not that Khan is against Rodgers\u2019 return but he doesn\u2019t want to put timelines on it the way the team was asked all last offseason.<\/p>\n \u2013 I wouldn\u2019t make much out of McCarthy saying he likes a big and athletic quarterback for his West Coast system. That wasn\u2019t a slight against Rodgers. His quarterbacks have been pocket passers and if there\u2019s anyone who can run McCarthy\u2019s offense, it\u2019s Rodgers. If anything, McCarthy has rarely worked with a highly mobile quarterback throughout his career. Rodgers was athletic but that wasn\u2019t his top trait. Aaron Brooks might be the closest comparison.<\/p>\n \u2013 I liked hearing McCarthy commit to Pittsburgh keeping its 3-4.<\/a> Base odd versus even front matters less than years ago but the Steelers\u2019 group is still best suited to stay in its 3-4. Nick Herbig\u2019s gotta be happy.<\/p>\n McCarthy later spoke about keeping the \u201clanguage\u201d the same. It reminded me of the comment Tomlin once made about keeping the phrase \u201cDog Rush\u201d in the playbook from Bill Cowher\/Dick LeBeau. So that players from all generations, those who played in the 90s, 00s, 2010s, and today, would all know exactly what \u201cDog Rush\u201d meant.<\/p>\n \u2013 We heard McCarthy praise Will Howard. That\u2019s not a shock. It\u2019s consistent with reporting and he wasn\u2019t going to throw Howard under the bus while sitting next to Rooney and Khan, two men involved in drafting him. I bet every candidate who interviewed spoke highly of Howard.<\/p>\n What I wish would\u2019ve been asked was Howard\u2019s potential role entering the offseason. If Rodgers doesn\u2019t come back, is Howard in the mix to start? A big question to ask in an introductory press conference, I know, but it would have tested McCarthy\u2019s actual belief in Howard.<\/p>\n \u2013 Though it\u2019s already known about his offensive system, expect to see a lot more receivers on the field under McCarthy compared to Arthur Smith. He discussed the need to play \u201cmatchups\u201d with different skill sets and body types, which means having more of those guys on the field. McCarthy\u2019s offenses have used a fair amount of 12 personnel in the past, but it\u2019ll pale in comparison to Smith\u2019s tight-end heavy personnel.<\/p>\n \u2013 The two current Steelers who attended the presser were EDGE Alex Highsmith and CB Joey Porter Jr. Wouldn\u2019t make a big deal out of others, like Cam Heyward or T.J. Watt, skipping it. A lot of those guys aren\u2019t even in the area, having left the city for the offseason. Watt\u2019s probably back in Wisconsin \u2013 which sure isn\u2019t a bad place to spend some time.<\/a><\/p>\n The older guys are still digesting Tomlin\u2019s departure, too.<\/p>\n \u2013 Big picture takeaway. McCarthy did fine. Well, even. It comes as little surprise. This is McCarthy\u2019s third time in the chair. He\u2019s conducted hundreds of press conferences and spent 2025 making semi-regular appearances on The Pat McAfee Show, giving him additional exposure to television and how to present yourself. It\u2019s easy to see why he came off well in his interview.<\/p>\n
Kevin Stefanski: 43 minutes
John Harbaugh: 25 minutes<\/p>\n