The Pittsburgh Steelers aren’t pressing reset in 2026 - they’re doubling down.
With the hiring of Mike McCarthy as their next head coach, the Steelers are signaling loud and clear that they’re not entering a rebuild. They’re aiming to stay in the mix, to keep competing, and to do it with a roster that, while imperfect, still has playoff pedigree. General Manager Omar Khan now faces the challenge of maximizing this group’s potential, even as questions linger about age, depth, and what comes next at quarterback.
McCarthy made his stance crystal clear during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, where he addressed the state of the roster and his expectations for the upcoming season.
“You look at the roster - this is not a start-over opportunity at all,” McCarthy said. “I mean, it’s a football team that was in the playoffs last year. So, to categorize it, it’s a playoff roster.”
That’s a telling quote. McCarthy isn’t walking into this job with the mindset of tearing things down and starting from scratch. He sees a team that fought its way into the postseason and believes the foundation is strong enough to build on.
And to be fair, he’s not wrong. The Steelers were a playoff team last year.
That matters. It’s easy to forget in the chaos of an NFL season, but just getting into the dance is something - especially with the kind of roster questions Pittsburgh faced throughout the year.
The defense, led by T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward, remains the heart and soul of this team.
Even as both players get older, their impact is still felt on every snap.
But that age is part of the equation, too. Watt and Heyward aren’t getting younger, and neither are other veterans who may play a role in 2026. The quarterback situation remains unsettled, and while McCarthy’s offensive background could provide a much-needed jolt, it’s fair to wonder how far that bump can take them without a clear long-term answer under center.
The Steelers do have some tools to work with. They’re sitting on a healthy amount of cap space and own valuable draft capital.
But the offseason market - both in free agency and the draft - isn’t exactly overflowing with franchise-altering talent this year. That puts even more pressure on McCarthy and Khan to be precise with their moves.
There’s little room for error if Pittsburgh wants to stay relevant in a loaded AFC.
The question, then, isn’t whether the Steelers can remain competitive. They can.
With the right offseason, they could absolutely be back in the playoff picture. The real question is: what’s the ceiling?
For the past several seasons, Pittsburgh has lived in that 9-11 win range - good enough to be in the mix, not quite good enough to make a real run. That’s a tough space to live in for a franchise with the kind of legacy the Steelers carry.
And it’s clear they’re not interested in bottoming out to reload. They’re sticking to the formula: build around defense, stay competitive, and trust the infrastructure.
Hiring McCarthy fits that mold. He’s a veteran coach with a proven track record, someone who can bring stability and offensive structure to a team that’s lacked consistency on that side of the ball. His job now is to take a roster with playoff potential - not promise - and turn it into something more.
Whether that’s enough to push the Steelers past their recent ceiling remains to be seen. But one thing’s clear: this team isn’t backing down.
They’re running it back, not rebuilding. And in today’s NFL, where windows can close fast and open even faster, that’s a bet they’re willing to make.