Steelers fans have always held their coaches to a high standard, and Mike McCarthy might face a tough challenge living up to that. After years of success under Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin, if the Steelers struggle early in the season, McCarthy might face pressure from fans and analysts.

“They [fans] never let go of Bill Cowher,” sports writer Conor Orr said on Heed the Call NFL Podcast. “Even though Mike Tomlin was as successful, and in some ways more successful than Bill Cowher given that Herculean streak of .500-or-better seasons, it was always, ‘Well, what happened to Bill Cowher? What happened to Bill Cowher?’

“I’m going to be amused when four weeks into the season this team is not fitting the identity that they expect to play with, and everybody’s now begging for Mike Tomlin to come back because I think that’s probably going to happen.”

Bill Cowher set the standard for the Steelers when he coached the team from 1992 to 2006. He won Super Bowl XL and built a strong football culture in Pittsburgh. After Cowher retired, the comparisons continued. After him, Mike Tomlin took over in 2007 and continued that success.

During Tomlin’s time in Pittsburgh, the Steelers never finished below .500, and the team recorded 22 straight non-losing seasons from 2003 through 2025. In January 2026, Tomlin announced his retirement and moved to a broadcasting role with NBC.

Both coaches had solid seasons with the Steelers, as Cowher finished with a 149-90-1 regular-season record and won one Super Bowl. Tomlin finished even better with a 193-114-2 record and also won one Super Bowl. But the comparison never ended.

Now, if the Steelers team doesn’t show up quickly, fans might start missing Tomlin real soon.

However, Mike McCarthy is doing everything in his control to build a tough team. Tomlin’s camps were known for being very tough and physical, where players were pushed hard every day. McCarthy is taking a more balanced approach, giving players enough work while also helping them stay fresh and healthy. Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman Spencer Anderson explained the entire situation.

“We’re used to a hundred miles an hour, nonstop, and we’re kind of dead tired by the end of practice,” Anderson said earlier this week. “But now we can kind of temper it down, and we still have maybe 10% left in the tank. But obviously don’t tell [McCarthy] I said that.”

In 2025, Pittsburgh ran only 58.1 offensive plays per game and the offense took about 29.2 seconds between snaps, which was pretty slow. But McCarthy’s offenses have averaged 64.8 plays per game, so he is clearly aiming to bring in more speed.

One of the biggest changes under Mike McCarthy is how the Steelers practice physical play. He is cutting down on heavy contact and does not want players tackling each other to the ground during training camp because it can lead to injuries. The team also skipped the famous ‘backs-on-backers’ drill early in camp, a tough one-on-one battle between running backs and linebackers that was a regular part of Mike Tomlin’s practices.

Now, with these changes, it will be interesting to see if the Steelers show a solid performance under McCarthy.