It's been a whirlwind week for the Pittsburgh Steelers and their fans. After another blowout loss in the playoffs, major changes were put into motion on Tuesday afternoon. Long-time Head Coach Mike Tomlin resigned, making the Steelers the eighth team in this NFL coaching cycle looking for a new leader. With a lot of competition on the market, Steelers leadership had to move quickly, and they have done just that with several requests to interview potential new coaches on Wednesday, including former linebackers coach Brian Flores. This process has also included up and coming defensive coordinator, Chris Shula from the Los Angeles Rams.
John McCoy / AP photo
Rams Defensive Coordinator Chris Shula roams the sideline while coaching his unit.
On Thursday, the team decided to request permission to speak to another young bright defensive-mind according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. This time, it's Carolina Panthers Defensive Coordinator Ejiro Evero. Evero has held that position with the Panthers for the past three seasons after spending one season as the Denver Broncos defensive coordinator. Evero moved on from the Broncos when Sean Payton was hired as Peyton decided to go with Vance Joseph as defensive coordinator.
The #Steelers have requested to speak with #Panthers DC Ejiro Evero for their open head coaching job, source said. Another strong defensive voice.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 15, 2026
Currently, Evero is the sixth known coach that the Steelers have requested an interview with as of Thursday morning. The others include Anthony Weaver, Jesse Minter, Nathan Scheelhaase, Flores, and Shula. Only one of the six requests is an "offensive-minded" coach with that coming with Rams Passing Game Coordinator Scheelhaase. That could give fans and early indication that the team is going to stick with a defensive-minded coach like Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, and Tomlin.
NFL.com
Panthers Defensive Coordinator Ejiro Evero during a game in 2025.
Evero is reportedly already in the mix for the head coaching job with the Atlanta Falcons and the Las Vegas Raiders. Before the Panthers, and Broncos, Evero also was an assistant for the Los Angeles Rams, Green Bay Packers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and San Francisco 49ers.
"If you look at EJ, if you're around him every day—you see the way he works, how smart he is," General Manager Dan Morgan told reporters on Tuesday. "I believe in his defense, I believe in his philosophy. He's really good at developing players."
This past season, the Panthers' defense allowed 327.2 total yards per game (16th) and 22.4 points per game (15th). Both of those stats are right near the middle of the pack when it comes to defense.
Evero, 45, was born in the United Kingdom before moving to California at an early age. He played safety at UC-Davis and was signed as an undrafted free agent with the then-Oakland Raiders in 2004. He got his start in coaching in the NFL with the Buccaneers in 2007 as a quality control assistant.
Steelers Leaning Defense Early On In Interviews
While Steelers President Art Rooney II said he was open to offensive, or defensive-minded coaches on Wednesday when he addressed the media, the early results are not backing up his words. That doesn't mean things can't change as we head towards the weekend, though. A few names to keep an eye on are Seattle's Klint Kubiak, and Jacksonville's Grant Udinski. Both are bright offensive-minds who were recently promoted to offensive coordinators, but are gaining a lot of steam as potential head coaches during this cycle.
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