The Pittsburgh Steelers have hired Mike McCarthy as their next head coach, breaking a longstanding tradition by brining in a coach that not only has previous NFL head coaching experience, but extensively so.
McCarthy has coached in 288 career games. The previous 16 Steelers head coaches had 174 combined games of NFL experience before they were hired in Pittsburgh.
That means that, when it comes to filling out his coaching staff, McCarthy will have an extensive Rolodex of former assistants that he can call up. (As a 62-year-old, McCarthy might have an actual Rolodex).
Just looking at potential offensive and defensive coordinator hires for the moment, here are 15 former McCarthy assistants that appear to be available to the Steelers this offseason:
Pettine had already been a head coach at the NFL level, spending two forgettable seasons leading the Cleveland Browns before McCarthy hired him as defensive coordinator in 2018.
Pettine stayed in Green Bay until 2020, then spent one season as a senior defensive assistant with the Chicago Bears and has been with the Minnesota Vikings as assistant head coach since 2022.
Joe Whitt Jr. joined McCarthy's Packers staff as a young coach in 2008, progressing to cornerbacks coach and defensive pass game coordinator. When McCarthy wen to Dallas , Whitt went with him, again as defensive pass game coordinator from 2021-23. In 2024, the Washington Commanders hired Whitt as defensive coordinator, but they fired him after the end of the 2025 season,
Patrick Graham spent just one season with McCarthy as a linebackers coach and run game coordinator in 2018. He earned a promotion as defensive coordinator with the Miami Dolphins in 2019, and then added assistant head coach to his role with the New York Giants from 2020-21. Since then, he's been the defensive coordinator of the Las Vegas Raiders through two different head coaches.
Al Harris played for McCarthy's Packers from 2006-10. He got his start in coaching elsewhere, but McCarthy brought him along to the Dallas Cowboys in 2020, making him defensive backs coach, and adding assistant head coach to his title in 2024.
Harris was not retained on the Dallas staff this season and spent the year as the defensive backs coach and defensive pass game coordinator for the Chicago Bears.
Jason Simmons was a fifth-round pick and spent five seasons as a cornerback for the Steelers from 1998-2001. McCarthy gave him his start in coaching in 2011 He worked his way up to secondary coach, before leaving in 2020 for the Carolina Panthers , where he added defensive passing game coordinator to his title. He's retained that role in stops with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2022-23 and with the Washington Commanders, where he's been since 2024.
Former Mike McCarthy Assistants & Potential Pittsburgh Steelers Offensive Coordinator Hires
New Orleans Saints quarterbacks coach Scott Tolzien
Scott Tolzien played quarterback for McCarthy's Packers from 2013-15 and then joined McCarthy's staff in 2020. He was promoted to quarterbacks coach in 2023, and then followed Kellen Moore to the New Orleans Saints as their quarterbacks coach in 2025.
New Orleans Saints tight ends coach Chase Haslett
Former Chicago Bears, Las Vegas Raiders offensive coordinator Luke Getsy
A Munhall native and Steel Valley alum, Getsy got his college career started at Pitt before transferring to Akron. He coached at Pitt and IUP among college stops before McCarthy hired him for his first NFL job as a quality control coach in 2014.
He left Green Bay to coach at Mississippi State under Joe Moorhead in 2018, then returned to the Packers after McCarthy had left, joining Matt LeFleur's staff in 2019 as quarterbacks coach. He was hired away by the Chicago Bears as offensive coordinator in 2022, then also had that role with the Las Vegas Raiders in 2024. Since then, he's been back in Green Bay as a senior assistant.
Former Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots offensive coordinator Alex Van Pelt
Another Pittsburgh native, Alex Van Pelt played collegiately at Pitt and was drafted by the Steelers in the eighth round in 1993, but never played for the team, spending most of his pro career with the Buffalo Bills .
He joined McCarthy's coaching staff in 2012 as running backs coach, and was promoted to quarterbacks coach in 2014. He left in 2018, taking the same job with the Cincinnati Bengals before earning a promotion to offensive coordinator with the Cleveland Browns in 2023. He was also the coordinator for the New England Patriots last year, and is currently the senior offensive assistant for Sean McVay and the Los Angeles Rams .
Former Green Bay Packers offensive coordinator Edgar Bennett
Edgar Bennett was already on the Green Bay coaching staff when the McCarthy took the Packers job. He was running backs coach, then wide receivers coach and then offensive coordinator from 2015-17.
Since then, he's been a wide receivers coach with the Las Vegas Raiders from 2018-24 and Jacksonville Jaguars on Liam Coen's staff this year.
Former New York Giants head coach Ben McAdoo
Ben McAdoo worked for McCarthy as tight ends coach and quarterbacks coach in Green Bay from 2006-13, before he moved on to become the offensive coordinator and then head coach of the New York Giants.
He's been with the New England Patriots since 2024 on Mike Vrabel's staff, first as senior offensive assistant and this year as senior defensive assistant.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Mike McCarthy's Coaching Tree Has Plenty of Branches for Steelers to Mine for Coordinator Hires
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