Pittsburgh

Steelers

Smiley coached in the college ranks from 2005-2012 before making the leap to the NFL in 2013 as the Jaguars’ assistant special teams coordinator. He made a lateral move in 2017, joining former Bills head coach Sean McDermott’s staff in the same role. Smiley was then promoted to special teams coordinator in 2022 and served in that role for three seasons.

There’s certainly no denying the Steelers made the playoffs in 2025, but with no quarterback of note on the team and no notable receiver behind DK Metcalf on the depth chart, it’s hard to definitively say the Steelers have a playoff roster in place for next season. Add in two aging veterans on the defensive side in Cam Heyward and T.J. Watt and things get even more complicated. That said, McCarthy said he does not view the Steelers’ job as “a start-over opportunity,” so it will be interesting to see what the team’s roster turnover looks like in the coming months. As was the case with Mike Tomlin for several years, the Steelers still have to find a quarterback who can be a mainstay on the roster for more than two seasons.

The news was broken by Josina Anderson. Graham is only 47 years old but is becoming a coordinating lifer, spending the past four years in Vegas and a year in Miami before that. A Bill Belichick acolyte, Graham’s Steelers connection comes from his year on Mike McCarthy’s Packers staff in 2018. The Raiders’ defense was not “the problem” for the Silver and Black last season, but it certainly wasn’t the solution, either. Graham will have more to work with in the Steel City. It’s not a needle-moving hire, but it’s not a bad move.

This move makes sense for the Steelers, who fielded a very thin wide receiver corps in 2025. Perry, 26, last played regular season snaps with the Saints in 2023, catching 12-of-18 targets for 246 yards and four touchdowns.

Campen previously coached the Packers’ offensive line under head coach Mike McCarthy and notably served as his run game coordinator for one season as well. Campen has been out of football for the past two seasons, most recently having coached the Panthers’ offensive line from 2022-2023.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler notes that Tolzien was on the Packers’ roster, as a quarterback, under current Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy. McCarthy also hired Tolzien as an offensive assistant with the Cowboys in 2020 and promoted him to quarterbacks coach in 2023, where he served for two seasons.

Graham is currently on his way to Pittsburgh. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that “the expectation in some league circles” is that Graham will get the gig “if all goes well.” He previously interviewed for the Dolphins head-coaching vacancy and has been linked to the Commanders’ defensive coordinator vacancy as well.

Simmons originally interviewed for the Steelers’ defensive coordinator vacancy, but that role is expected to go to Patrick Graham. Now Simmons will reunite with Graham and head coach Mike McCarthy. Simmons got his start as a coach in Green Bay and wound up spending nearly a decade there. He has since held the title of defensive pass game coordinator for the Panthers, Raiders, and Commanders.

Pelissero said Ventrone, widely seen as one of the NFL’s best special teams coaches, is not expected to stay on with new Cleveland head coach Todd Monken, who will presumably clean house and bring in his own coaches for 2026. The Rams in 2025 had what was by most measures the worst special teams unit while the Steelers were mostly middle of the pack in special teams metrics. Ventrone’s Browns allowed the seventh most yards per kickoff return and the fifth most yards per punt return in 2025.

What is the first order of business for the Mike McCarthy Era? Obviously it’s interviewing his old coaches. Simmons was with McCarthy in Green Bay from 2011-2018. He’s been Washington’s defensive passing game coordinator since 2024.