After the Steelers handed the reins to Mike McCarthy as the head coach, the franchise has moved quickly to transform its coaching staff around him. This fresh start brings in familiar faces in Pittsburgh. Now, the team’s most recent move replaces Danny Smith, who left to join the Buccaneers.

“The Steelers are expected to hire Danny Crossman as their special teams coordinator, per sources,” NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on February 2. “Crossman, 59, brings over two decades of NFL experience, most recently with the Dolphins. This is a key hire for Mike McCarthy.”

Crossman was let go by the Dolphins after the 2024 season. Still, he offers 24 years of NFL expertise in special teams. He began his coaching career with the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1993 and went on to work at the college level before joining the Panthers in 2003 as their special teams assistant coach.

Later, the 59-year-old went on to become the special teams coordinator and stayed with Carolina from 2003 to 2009. Then he moved to Detroit and Buffalo, working for almost a decade with them combined, and finally landed with Miami in 2019. 

Crossman has big shoes to fill as he replaces Danny Smith, who served for 13 seasons under former head coach Mike Tomlin and was a beloved figure in Pittsburgh. However, with this key role now seemingly locked down by Crossman, another spot in the Steelers’ coaching carousel remains open after Arthur Smith’s recent exit.

Steelers eye Aaron Rodgers’ former teammate for the OC position

The news about Danny Crossman getting hired comes right after reports of the Steelers planning to interview Scott Tolzien for their offensive coordinator role. Whispers around the league point to a huge possibility of the Steelers bringing him on board, especially with Mike McCarthy calling the shots.

“The Steelers are reportedly interviewing Saints QB coach Scott Tolzien today for their offensive coordinator job, per @TomPelissero,” Steelers Depot noted on X. “Tolzien was an OC at the @seniorbowl in Mobile, AL a few days ago.”

Tolzien played under McCarthy and shared the same quarterback room as Aaron Rodgers during their time together in Green Bay. However, the former quarterback didn’t have much success playing. He finished his career with just four starts in four years in the league.

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But the Steelers are pulling out all the stops to poach coaches familiar with Rodgers, betting those ties could convince him to join, just like he did for Tomlin this past year. And Tolzien stands out as a strong candidate, thanks to his coaching connection with McCarthy.

When McCarthy was the head coach of the Cowboys, he hired Tolzien as a general assistant from 2020 to 2022 and then as quarterbacks coach until 2024. That partnership ended when the Cowboys fired McCarthy after Dallas could only win seven games in the 2024 season.

That shake-up led to Tolzien heading to the Saints to serve as the team’s quarterbacks coach. As the Steelers gear up to zero in on their quarterback position, this move proves just how badly they want to stabilize that spot while Aaron Rodgers’ future hangs in uncertainty.