The Pittsburgh Steelers' 2026 regular season is now less than a week away. New head coach Mike McCarthy is busy with his coaching staff preparing the team for their Week 1 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. He spoke to the media on Monday for his weekly press conference about the upcoming matchup.
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Pittsburgh Steelers Head Coach Mike McCarthy stands on the field and looks into the distance with his play sheet in hand as the team works out during a 2026 training camp practice at Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PA.
Expectations overall are uncertain this year as McCarthy brings in an entirely new philosophy and staff. The organization went under a lot of change in a short amount of time when former head coach Mike Tomlin stepped down.
On Monday evening, team insider Mark Kaboly joined 93.7 The Fan to discuss some storylines that surround the Black and Gold as they enter this new season. During his appearance, he was asked about the offensive line situation between rookie Max Iheanachor and veteran Dylan Cook. However, he was not able to provide much as he highlighted one big difference being noticed compared to the time when Tomlin was at the helm.
"We were allowed to see I believe six minutes of practice today," Kaboly said. "There was probably an hour and twenty minutes and we got to see six. I’ll tell you one thing about Mike McCarthy, something that I think he is that Mike Tomlin isn’t; he’s a little bit more paranoid than Mike Tomlin was. At least early on here in his tenure here in Pittsburgh because he’s not giving up anything, man. The coaching staff is very tight-lipped on anything."
This new change under the head coach does little to offer any type of additional insight as to how certain aspects of the team will look, including the offensive line situation. There are also some other positions that are in question such as the wide receiver depth behind DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. Many are wondering if Roman Wilson will get the reps at that third wide receiver spot or if it will be rookie Germie Bernard. However, it appears that this change by the Steelers head coach will not answer any of these questions ahead of Week 1.
This comes following him saying that he feels Bernard has a bright future in Pittsburgh. While that may be true, the tight-lipped nature of him and his coaching staff make it complicated to understand if he means the rookie will see a solid amount of playing time this season, or if that is down the road. Despite Kaboly saying that he feels this is a paranoid approach, it may not be the worst idea to keep quiet, given the sweeping changes made across the organization this past offseason.
Steelers Have A Great Reason To Keep Cards Close To The Vest
While this change in practice availability to the media may not be ideal for outsiders, it could benefit the Steelers in the long run. With veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers returning to reunite with McCarthy, the franchise set out a clear goal heading into the upcoming NFL season. This team wants to win now rather than try to rebuild things in 2026, and that is especially true when it comes to the playoffs.
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Pittsburgh Steelers veteran QB Aaron Rodgers (8) during 2026 training camp as Head Coach Mike McCarthy looks on in Latrobe, PA.
With Rodgers publicly stating that 2026 will be his final NFL season, Pittsburgh looks to make a deep run with the four-time NFL MVP. The one thing they did to set that up to happen was add the weapons in Pittman and Bernard this offseason to take attention off of Metcalf in the passing game. While Kaboly feels McCarthy has a paranoid approach this offseason, it may instead have a different meaning to it. Given the goals for the Black and Gold in the 2026 season, this move can be a smart strategy to give opponents a more limited way to game plan.
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