Starkey & Mueller

Further reaction to Mike McCarthy after his introduction as Steelers head coach. Big Mike choking up was a cool moment. Do we feel better about the hire after hearing him for the first time entrenched in black & gold? The guys don’t understand how McCarthy was in love with the roster and wasn’t yet into the draft process, but maybe he was flustered and finding things to say.

The guys reacted to what they heard from Mike McCarthy at his opening press conference as Steelers head coach. It didn’t have them feeling any better – in fact, it had Poni, who was relatively high on the hire, feel worse. They went into the answers about Aaron Rodgers, the QB position, the defense, along with his ties to Pittsburgh, which were aplenty.

PM Team FULL Show 1-26-26

Do you believe Mike McCarthy can lead the Steelers to another championship? Art Rooney II feels like the team is right there to make it happen and McCarthy is the guy to take them over the top. McCarthy brings a viewpoint from the offensive side of the field, which is nice, but how similar is it to Mike Tomlin? The guys went into the interview process and why it was a total sham. Poni said it gives off Kenny Pickett vibes because McCarthy is from Pittsburgh. Chris reiterated that his F grade isn’t in the direction of Mike McCarthy – it’s in the direction of the process. More calls on the Steelers’ hiring of Mike McCarthy. PM Team Professors.

Mike McCarthy is reportedly high on Will Howard. Was that the golden ticket to McCarthy getting the job – telling Art Rooney and Omar Khan he had a lot of intrigue in their 6th round, soon-to-be 2nd year QB? Chris still doesn’t think there is anything there with Howard. Poni said Howard is a free roll of the dice and either scenario can work out for the Steelers. Is it a better option than running things back with Aaron Rodgers at 43-years-old? Are we giving Mike McCarthy too much credit for his work with QBs? Donny Football Debrief – If the Pro Bowl accolade wasn’t dead already, it is now. Shedeur Sanders is a pro bowler.

Poni said he got some rationale on why the Steelers made the coaching search a total farce and neglected talking to candidates like Chris Shula and Nate Scheelhaase. Poni was told Shula ‘bombed’ his virtual interview with the Steelers. Poni added that Scheelhaase ‘impressed’ the Steelers, but the front office brass ‘didn’t think he was ready’ to be a head coach. Another mention from Poni included the nugget that Anthony Weaver brought up Kliff Kingsbury as his potential OC. Poni, who is still in NYC, was at a show on Saturday afternoon when the Mike McCarthy news came down. Poni is not 100% sure McCarthy will call plays. What do we think the rest of the staff could look like? McCarthy Minute – Bill Cowher loves the hire of Mike McCarthy.

The Steelers have hired Mike McCarthy as their next head coach. The news broke Saturday afternoon, which the guys thought had some meaning in and of itself. How do we feel about the hire? Poni is glad the team has finally come around to an offensive-minded guy. Chris continued to grade it an F – calling out the entire process, which seemed to be a farce from the jump and that the Steelers always wanted McCarthy. Are the Steelers any closer to a title than they were with Mike Tomlin? Is Mike McCarthy better than Mike Tomlin? The resume looks very similar. McCarthy has actually developed a coaching tree in his time as a head coach. Can McCarthy turn Will Howard into a good QB? Pro Football Minute – Super Bowl LX is set. Why didn’t the Steelers wait to interview any of these guys? Does the Steelers victory over the Patriots mean anything now? Did the Steelers make a mistake not signing Sam Darnold?

Do you believe Mike McCarthy can lead the Steelers to another championship? Art Rooney II feels like the team is right there to make it happen and McCarthy is the guy to take them over the top. McCarthy brings a viewpoint from the offensive side of the field, which is nice, but how similar is it to Mike Tomlin? The guys went into the interview process and why it was a total sham. Poni said it gives off Kenny Pickett vibes because McCarthy is from Pittsburgh. Chris reiterated that his F grade isn’t in the direction of Mike McCarthy – it’s in the direction of the process.

Donny Football Debrief – If the Pro Bowl accolade wasn’t dead already, it is now. Shedeur Sanders is a pro bowler.

Mike McCarthy is reportedly high on Will Howard. Was that the golden ticket to McCarthy getting the job – telling Art Rooney and Omar Khan he had a lot of intrigue in their 6th round, soon-to-be 2nd year QB? Chris still doesn’t think there is anything there with Howard. Poni said Howard is a free roll of the dice and either scenario can work out for the Steelers. Is it a better option than running things back with Aaron Rodgers at 43-years-old? Is McCarthy getting too much credit for his work with QBs?

McCarthy Minute – Bill Cowher loves the hire of Mike McCarthy.

Poni said he got some rationale on why the Steelers made the coaching search a total farce and neglected talking to candidates like Chris Shula and Nate Scheelhaase. Poni was told Shula ‘bombed’ his virtual interview with the Steelers. Poni added that Scheelhaase ‘impressed’ the Steelers, but the front office brass ‘didn’t think he was ready’ to be a head coach. Another mention from Poni included the nugget that Anthony Weaver brought up Kliff Kingsbury as his potential OC.

Pro Football Minute – Super Bowl LX is set. Why didn’t the Steelers wait to interview any of these guys? Does the Steelers victory over the Patriots mean anything now? Did the Steelers make a mistake not signing Sam Darnold?

The Steelers have hired Mike McCarthy as their next head coach. The news broke Saturday afternoon, which the guys thought had some meaning in and of itself. How do we feel about the hire? Poni is glad the team has finally come around to an offensive-minded guy. Chris continued to grade it an F – calling out the entire process, which seemed to be a farce from the jump and that the Steelers always wanted McCarthy. Are the Steelers any closer to a title than they were with Mike Tomlin?

Andrew Fillipponi joins Chris live from NYC to talk about Mike McCarthy. Poni says that this could be all about Will Howard and McCarthy may work with Howard to be the guy. Could McCarthy bring Aaron Rodgers back?

"What is this guy doing?" - Joe Starkey on Art Rooney II hiring Mike McCarthy. Joe says Rooney was comfortable running it back with Mike Tomlin and he is, just the last names changed. The man that predicted the hire, Mark Kaboly, hops on with Mullsy. Nostraboly says that he got about a 10 minute heads up that this was happening. He says that if the Steelers get a good quarterback for the future but struggle doing so, it is still a win in Kaboom's eyes.

Donny Football hops on. He was not as fired up starting the call as he was towards the end of the call. Donny says it is a sad state of affairs if Nate Scheelhaase and Chris Shula did not want the Steelers job. However, if they chose McCarthy over the other options it was a bad move.

Jeff Hatthorn joins the show! What are his thoughts on the Steelers hiring Mike McCarthy to be the next head coach. Jeff says that the timing of it was weird and thought the Steelers would have waited to talk to the Rams candidates. Adam Crowley also joins to give his instant reaction to Mike McCarthy becoming the next Steelers Head Coach. It is a FIVE year deal for McCarthy, according to Gerry Dulac, and Mullsy is not happy.

Chris Mueller does NOT like this hire in any way, shape, or form. Chris goes after Art Rooney and Omar Kahn for hiring an older version of Mike Tomlin and the worst option on the table. They picked the one option nobody wanted. The phone calls come fast and furious and not one call we took is a fan of this hire. 

The Steelers continue to interview candidates to be their next head coach, but whoever is selected will need to find the team’s next QB!