The Mike McCarthy era officially began for the Pittsburgh Steelers on Tuesday, and he said all of the right things at his opening news conference.
He embodies the mindset of a Pittsburgh Steeler and seems extraordinarily proud of being the team’s next head coach. He is a Pittsburgher and understands the tradition as well as — or better — than any other candidate that was interviewed. He also has a track record of success in the NFL.
It might not be an overly exciting hire, but it is definitely not a bad hire.
The thing that is going to make it or break it will be his ability to develop the one position that has eluded the Steelers since the retirement of future Hall of Fame Ben Roethlisberger: the quarterback. And it is going to have to be a fresh start at the position.
Aaron Rodgers and Will Howard are not the answer for Steelers
Ever since the retirement of Roethlisberger, the Steelers have dealt with a revolving door of quarterbacks that has included Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, Justin Fields, Russell Wilson and, most recently, Aaron Rodgers.
None of them have been the answer, and it has lowered the Steelers’ ceiling to that of a first-round-exit playoff team.
Because their defense has been good enough, and because former head coach Mike Tomlin was able to squeeze every possible win that he could out of a flawed roster, the Steelers were able to keep winning enough games to remain somewhat relevant and sneak into the playoffs. But they never did anything more than that. It became a problem and ultimately resulted in Tomlin stepping away after 19 years on the job.
If the Steelers want to raise their ceiling, it is going to have to be with the development of their next franchise quarterback.
The arrival of McCarthy has promoted talk that Rodgers could return for another season. McCarthy has also spoken highly of second-year player Will Howard. But neither player can be seen as a solution.
The Steelers already saw what Rodgers is capable of, and it is not good enough. There is no way it gets better with him being another year older.
Howard had a great college career at Ohio State, including a national championship, but he is a sixth-round pick who has yet to play a snap in a single NFL game (preseason or regular season) due to injury. He is a project, and the ceiling for him might be as a backup. There is just too much unknown there.
McCarthy is an offensive coach with a background in the passing game. He has developed high-level quarterbacks in the past. His ability to do so here is what will ultimately be his legacy with the Steelers.
That is what will break them out of this cycle of mediocrity. That is what McCarthy is in Pittsburgh to do.