There have been many reactions to the Pittsburgh Steelers hiring Mike McCarthy. However, Steelers president Art Rooney II sent an assuring message to Steelers fans, according to Alan Sanders of Steelers Now.
“We’re really not worried about winning the initial press conference,” said Rooney II, “It’s about picking the coach we believe will help us win games, and social media really doesn’t enter into it. And none of that will matter once we’re starting to play games.
“The message for our fans is we’re very excited. We think we have a coach who is well-equipped to lead us into the next winning phase of Steelers football, and that’s what it’s all about. I think they’re going to love Coach Mike.”
The Steelers have had no problem winning games over the last 20 years. In the Mike Tomlin era, they infamously never had a losing season through 19 years. However, they’ve never been good enough to make deep playoff runs, as Tomlin went 8-12 in the playoffs, with a Super Bowl win (2008 season), another Super Bowl appearance (2010 season) and two AFC championship appearances through his 19 years. He ended his tenure with six straight playoff losses, including five in the Wild Card round.
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Steelers fans are equally concerned with McCarthy. He won a Super Bowl with Green Bay at the end of the 2010 season, beating the Steelers to do it too. However, he has just a 6-9 record in the playoffs since that run, never making it past the championship game since 2016. Even with the Dallas Cowboys, McCarthy had just one playoff win in three years.
However, there are some that have voiced their support, such as former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher.
“I really like this hire,”Cowher said, “No. 1, he’s an offensive minded guy. He grew up under Marty Schottenheimer, so he knows the value in running the football…everywhere he’s been, he’s uplifted the offense.”
McCarthy has helped quarterback Aaron Rodgers win the 2011 and 2014 MVP, while Dak Prescott was an MVP finalist under his watch. Time will tell if he can take any Steelers quarterback to those heights, but it will come a long way towards proving Art Rooney II right.
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