A Great Former Steelers Coach Wanted To Return To Mike McCarthy's Staff But Insane Reason Prevented It

The Pittsburgh Steelers are entering a new era. They have officially hired Mike McCarthy to be their next head coach and should use his modern approach to finally develop a quarterback. The goal is also to have an offense that is consistently good for the first time since the Killer B's era. Part of this new wave is taking a more analytical approach to things and introducing Pittsburgh to new roles such as "Chief of Staff" and "Pass Game Coordinator," which many teams already have; they're just new to the Steel City. 

However, there are still some old problems holding the coaching staff back. After speaking with Steelers Takeaways, long-time defensive coach Dom Capers revealed exactly why he never ended up joining McCarthy's staff in the Steel City.

"Just spoke with Browns senior defensive assistant and former Steelers defensive coordinator Dom Capers who said he was talking to Coach McCarthy about joining the Steelers staff, but it didn’t work out due to Pittsburgh’s staff size."

The size of the staff should not be a problem. The Steelers still have one of the smallest staffs in the NFL, as there are a few coaches who have multiple roles on the team. It's not quite as archaic and bare-bones as it was under Mike Tomlin, but it's also not that far off. McCarthy's new coaching roster only has two more individuals on it than Tomlin's did in 2025, which was his final season as the head coach. 

This could be a preference for McCarthy, as he has had smaller coaching staffs in the past, as that's what he worked with all throughout his time with the Dallas Cowboys. Owner Jerry Jones may be a lot of things, but he is definitely not cheap. If the coaching staff there was small, it likely was not by his command. 

Once the new Steelers' leader reached 21 assistants and four members of the strength and conditioning team, he likely told everyone else he was not interested in adding. 

There has to be more than just the staff being too full. If McCarthy truly believed that Capers could help him team win a Super Bowl, size of the staff should mean absolutely nothing. What good coach would tell a quality, trusted assistant "no" if he thinks he can do well? Either that trust truly is not there like it seems, or there is something else holding McCarthy back from being able to do what he really wants. 

Steelers' Ownership Comes Into Question Once Again

Owner Art Rooney II has developed a reputation for being extremely cheap. It's unclear whether that had an effect on McCarthy's decision to turn Capers away, but it is fair for fans to at least consider this as a valid theory. If this is the case, then all he's doing is proving the angry fans right. If not, then he has nothing to worry about. 

There were theories in the past that Rooney was the reason that Tomlin's staff was so frustratingly small; although, they have never been confirmed or denied. It could be true that he's just getting thrown under the bus for no reason, but until he proves that he is willing to spend money to help the team in any way necessary, these accusations will keep flying left and right. 

Either way, size of staff is never a good reason to turn away a coach that you respect. If him being on the team will be seen as helpful more than harmful, you bring him in with no questions asked. If that truly is McCarthy's only reason for not hiring him, then that is a bad omen for what's to come in his third stint as head coach. If not, then there are other serious issues with Capers or the organization as a whole.

What do you think about Capers being rejected from Pittsburgh's staff? Let us know on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

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