Steelers' Mike McCarthy Has Not Been Part Of Official Roster Conversations Behind The Scenes

The Pittsburgh Steelers are facing some uncertainty as the 53-man roster cutdown deadline approaches. It's Sunday, August 30, and there are still lingering questions around how many and which quarterbacks will make the official roster. Injuries and preseason performances are factoring into what the wide receiver and defensive back rooms will look like too, as Pittsburgh makes their final cuts at the end of the month.

The 2026 preseason has been an interesting time for Pittsburgh. Many star players on both sides of the ball have not seen any preseason game action and a few have seen very little practice time. Cornerback Joey Porter Jr., who has been dealing with an injury and a contract dispute, has not touched the field at all throughout the preseason. Jalen Ramsey has dealt with an injury for the majority of the summer as well. Wide receivers DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. have not played any preseason snaps and have both missed stints of practice with injuries themselves. 

These absences have led to more opportunities for presumed second-, third-, and even fourth-string players. This is a blessing and a curse for the team. On one hand, the coaching staff has been able to take a deep look into the abilities of guys that might not have received as many reps if the first team unit was fully healthy. The downside, however, is the tough choices that have to be made by the team when deciding the final roster cuts. 

Head Coach Mike McCarthy was captured speaking on the issue at practice on Monday. In a video by Chris Adamski of TribLIVE, McCarthy had a lot to say about final roster construction practices and what has been going on behind the scenes in Pittsburgh.

"I haven't been part of any conversations with the 53 [man roster] that has been selected already," McCarthy said. "Any position, we definitely have ideas. I think it is evident we are trying to play the players in many different combinations."

McCarthy went on to say that not everyone is going to make the team right away, but they will have future chances to do so. He also made it clear that he takes pride in letting players get as many preseason opportunities as possible.

Steelers' McCarthy Knows What It Takes To Win

McCarthy has championship experience from long before landing with the Steelers. He was the head coach of the Green Bay Packers when the team defeated Pittsburgh, 31-25, in Super Bowl XLV. Interestingly enough, the team was led by quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who is now in the Black and Gold. 

NFL rosters are ever-changing, something that the newest Steelers head coach is familiar with. 

"It's probably gonna take more than 68 players to win a championship. I've been part of one championship and it's a principle of how you develop and build a roster," McCarthy noted. "It took 77 players for us to be able to get that done."

The Steelers have a plethora of new faces in town this season, on both sides of the ball. The preseason has been very interesting to watch as a lot of players that fans did not expect to see much of, have received plenty of opportunities. These factors have led to a lot of buzz surrounding who will and won't make the final roster.

If the team wants any chance at seriously competing, though, the veterans and big-name players of the organization are going to need to get some real work in together before the regular season begins. It has been shown time and time again that NFL football is a team sport, and more importantly, chemistry goes a very long way in this league. The mix of savvy veterans and fiery young players has a very promising chance of producing impressive on-field results, but not if the team cannot gel and put it all together before the Steelers kick off the regular season at Acrisure Stadium against the Atlanta Falcons on September 13. 

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