The Steelers are interviewing a pair of coaching candidates with Pittsburgh ties in their search for Mike Tomlin’s replacement.
Former Steelers assistant Brian Flores and Pittsburgh native Mike McCarthy are interviewing with the club, according to ESPN.
Flores, a former linebackers coach with the club and current Vikings defensive coordinator, reportedly is interviewing Tuesday, while McCarthy, the former Cowboys and Packers coach, will do so Wednesday.
Pittsburgh is one of six openings remaining —- Raiders, Cardinals, Browns, Bills and Ravens—- and the next coach will have big shoes to fill after Tomlin led the franchise to a Super Bowl championship during the 2008 season and did not post a losing record across his nearly two decades with the team.
The Steelers hired Tomlin following one year as the Vikings’ defensive coordinator in 2006 to replace Bill Cowher, making this a difficult opening to project.
“I don’t want to sort of put any real parameters around it,” Steelers owner Art Rooney II said of the team’s search, per ESPN.
“We’re going to be an open book in terms of who we look for and the list that we build. So yeah, could I sign up for another Chuck Noll or another Bill Cowher or another Mike Tomlin? Sure. Somebody that we feel fits that mold would be great, but for now we’re not going to narrow the box too much.”
Flores, 44, spent the 2022 season with the franchise after being fired as Miami’s head coach.
He’s since thrived as the Vikings’ defensive coordinator, putting himself in position to land another job.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter noted that should Flores not land a head-coaching opportunity, there’s a “good chance” Minnesota will retain him in that role.
McCarthy, 62, is looking to get back into coaching after taking a year off following his Cowboys departure.
He spent 13 seasons with the Packers from 2006-09, winning a championship, and then guided the Cowboys from 2020-’24.
McCarthy has been linked to several other jobs during this cycle, including the now-filled Giants and Titans positions.
Early odds had Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula as the betting favorite to land the Steelers’ gig.
Shula, Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter and Dolphins defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver are among those who have interviewed virtually, per the team. In-person interviews are expected to begin this week.
Whoever coaches the Steelers may not have Aaron Rodgers back as their quarterback, since there is uncertainty about whether he will return.
NFL Network said that possibility is in doubt since Tomlin is no longer there, while ESPN reported the organization is still open to a potential second season with the 42-year-old QB.
Rodgers could retire, though.
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