Starkey & Mueller

More on the Steelers vacant head coach position. Donny wants the Steelers to go after Klint Kubiak, the Seahawks offensive coordinator. The Steelers have interviewed Klint's brother, Klay. Klay is the offensive coordinator for the 49ers. Alan Saunders joins the show to talk about the Steelers HC opening. Alan thinks that Chris Shula is the favorite to become the next head coach, and he would like the hire if it was made. Shula has the lowest-paid defense in the NFL, and it has been very effective. Alan thinks the Steelers would prefer for Scheelhaase to come with Shula. He thinks that Jeff Hafley is a dark horse to take the job. 49ers insider Larry Kreuger joins the show. Larry thinks that the Steelers should definitely consider Niners OC Klay Kubiak for their head coaching position. He says that Klay did a lot with a little in San Francisco this year. Intern Jack has today's debrief.

Art Rooney alluded to the fact that Aaron Rodgers came to the Steelers to play for Mike Tomlin, however, there have been reports suggesting that the Steelers want Aaron Rodgers back. Donny does not think that the Steelers will actually bring Rodgers back. He also does not think that Aaron Rodgers will want to play for the Steelers. More calls on the current state of the Steelers. The CFP National Championship Game is tonight, who takes it home? Donny is rooting for Indiana to win it all. He says that this season for Indiana should go down as one of the greatest seasons of all time.

Sean McDermott was fired in Buffalo after the Bills fell to the Denver Broncos over the weekend. With Buffalo having a coaching opening, how far down is Pittsburgh on the "best possible opening" list? Buffalo and Baltimore are ahead of them right now. An argument can be made for others, especially with the Raiders having the number one pick. Who are the candidates that the Steelers have on their interview list that intrigue Donny the most? Should the Steelers look into Sean McDermott as their head coach? Donny says he would not be sold on him because he could not win with Josh Allen as his quarterback. Jesse Marshall of the Athletic joins the show to answer if the Penguins could actually win a shootout. He says Stuart Skinner will need to be the guy to start in a shootout. He talks about the state of the team, being more competitive than a lot of people expected them to be, and looking at Mike Sullivan in a bad situation in New York. He does not expect them to stray away from the course of staying competitive

The NFL Draft in Pittsburgh is less than 100 days away. Ryan Wilson joins the show to talk about it. The QB class that was supposed to be elite completely fell off, leaving arguably only one first-round talent in Fernando Mendoza. Breaking News: The Miami Dolphins hired Jeff Hafley as their new head coach. Ryan has the Steelers taking Denzel Boston, a WR from Washington, in the first round.

More on the Steelers vacant head coach position. Donny wants the Steelers to go after Klint Kubiak, the Seahawks offensive coordinator. The Steelers have interviewed Klint's brother, Klay. Klay is the offensive coordinator for the 49ers.

Art Rooney alluded to the fact that Aaron Rodgers came to the Steelers to play for Mike Tomlin, however, there have been reports suggesting that the Steelers want Aaron Rodgers back. Donny does not think that the Steelers will actually bring Rodgers back. He also does not think that Aaron Rodgers will want to play for the Steelers.

Jesse Marshall of the Athletic joins the show to answer if the Penguins could actually win a shootout. He says Stuart Skinner will need to be the guy to start in a shootout. He talks about the state of the team, being more competitive than a lot of people expected them to be, and looking at Mike Sullivan in a bad situation in New York. He does not expect them to stray away from the course of staying competitive and trying to get younger. Parker Wotherspoon has become the biggest X-Factor for the team this year. We play a game of "Stay or Go". 

Sean McDermott was fired in Buffalo after the Bills fell to the Denver Broncos over the weekend. With Buffalo having a coaching opening, how far down is Pittsburgh on the "best possible opening" list? Buffalo and Baltimore are ahead of them right now. An argument can be made for others, especially with the Raiders having the number one pick. Who are the candidates that the Steelers have on their interview list that intrigue Donny the most?

What a week! It started with hopes for a Super Bowl run and it ends with the Steelers interviewing candidates for their next head coach after Mike Tomlin stepped down.

PM Team FULL Show 1-16-26

What was the real reason why Mike Tomlin left the Steelers? Did it have to do with all on-field stuff? Was it the lack of playoff success in the final decade? What was the dynamic between Tomlin and Art Rooney in the end? We still don’t know if Tomlin stepped away more for personal reasons or football reasons. The guys talked about the weird motion of Tomlin opting to not do an exit press conference after nearly 2 decades on the sideline. Packers insider Pete Dougherty from the Green Bay Press-Gazette joined the show. Pete thinks the Steelers could be won over by Jeff Hafley and his charisma in the interview process. Pete said it may not be in Pittsburgh, but he would be pretty surprised if Hafley doesn't get a head coach job in this cycle. Pete mentioned a few offensive coaches that could come along with Hafley if he gets hired. How are things with Matt LaFleur and the Packers, who could be closing in on an impasse? Will the second half collapse against the Bears impact the Packers’ coaches going forward?

Steelers correspondent Mark Kaboly from The Pat McAfee Show joined the show. The conversation started with Mark’s days at Cal U, aka, Harvard on the Mon. Kaboom said he went to a lot of bowling alley bars back in the day. Mark has moved on to the coaching search and how Art Rooney and Omar Khan will handle this. Mark expects Khan to have ‘a lot of say’ in the process. Mark feels like it will be a coach from the same cloth that Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin were cut from – mid-30’s, first-time head coach and *possibly* defensive minded. Mark believes Art’s son, Danny Rooney, will have input in the choice. Mark said right now Chris Shula feels like the favorite to be the next guy, just based on their history and the list of coaches they will interview. Mark said if they go with the defensive mind, that guy better have a young, offensive mind with him or have a really convincing plan to change the offense. Where does Nate Scheelhaase rank on Mark’s list? Mark got into the challenges of commanding a room and being

Did Chris step all over Donny’s big moment of breaking the news of Mike Tomlin stepping down? We broke down the tape. More calls on the future of the Steelers. Former Steelers Super Bowl champion Bryant McFadden joined the show. BMac isn’t afraid of the Steelers future because they have proven multiple times they can get the hire right. Bryant is looking for a ‘leader of men’ more than an X’s & O’s savant when it comes to a head coach. The guys asked BMac about some of the HC candidates out there and what he loves/hates about their work. BMac talked about the lack of playmakers in the offense and why that has continued to be a shortcoming over the last few seasons. He said Kenneth Gainwell needs to come back and the QB is the elephant in the room. Bryant likes what they have brewing on the offensive line. BMac isn’t sure what is in the future for Cam Heyward, but he doesn’t think Cam ever plays anywhere else. BMac predicted Chris Shula would be the next head coach. The funny thought of Art Rooney II g

Poni is still coming down from the high he got once we heard the news of Mike Tomlin stepping down after Monday night’s loss to the Texans. He said it’s fun that we actually get to talk about this and it’s not all just a hypothetical this time. Should we be as excited as we are though? The guys talked about people having second thoughts. What would we prefer – previewing a game or having the chance to talk about the next head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers? Are callers ready to tell us to be careful what we wish for? Fair Game w/ Farabaugh – Steelers insider Nick Farabaugh from Penn Live dot com joined the show. Nick thinks it’s fair to say that either of the Rams coaches (Chris Shula & Nate Scheelhaase) could end up being the next head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He said they love the Sean McVay tree and people connected to his staff. Nick expects the Steelers to trend toward a younger coach, that hasn’t been a head coach yet, and also don’t have to have a defensive background. Nick believes

Packers insider Pete Dougherty from the Green Bay Press-Gazette joined the show. Pete thinks the Steelers could be won over by Jeff Hafley and his charisma in the interview process. Pete said it may not be in Pittsburgh, but he would be pretty surprised if Hafley doesn't get a head coach job in this cycle. Pete mentioned a few offensive coaches that could come along with Hafley if he gets hired. How are things with Matt LaFleur and the Packers, who could be closing in on an impasse? Will the second half collapse against the Bears impact the Packers’ coaches going forward? Pete described Malik Willis as a ‘godsend’ to the Packers this season when Jordan Love went down, but can he work in any offense?

Former Steelers Super Bowl champion Bryant McFadden joined the show. BMac isn’t afraid of the Steelers future because they have proven multiple times they can get the hire right. Bryant is looking for a ‘leader of men’ more than an X’s & O’s savant when it comes to a head coach. The guys asked BMac about some of the HC candidates out there and what he loves/hates about their work. BMac talked about the lack of playmakers in the offense and why that has continued to be a shortcoming over the last few seasons. He said Kenneth Gainwell needs to come back and the QB is the elephant in the room. Bryant likes what they have brewing on the offensive line. BMac isn’t sure what is in the future for Cam Heyward, but he doesn’t think Cam ever plays anywhere else. BMac predicted Chris Shula would be the next head coach.

Fair Game w/ Farabaugh – Steelers insider Nick Farabaugh from Penn Live dot com joined the show. Nick thinks it’s fair to say that either of the Rams coaches (Chris Shula & Nate Scheelhaase) could end up being the next head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. He said they love the Sean McVay tree and people connected to his staff. Nick expects the Steelers to trend toward a younger coach, that hasn’t been a head coach yet, and also don’t have to have a defensive background. Nick believes the Steelers job is a better one than the Dolphins job, which could be another spot for Shula in this cycle. Nick isn’t sure if Scheelhaase is hired this time around, but the Browns are a team to watch if he’s not offered by the Steelers. Nick isn’t over-the-moon about Ejiro Evero as a Mike Tomlin replacement, but Anthony Weaver is one that hasn’t gotten enough love so far. Nick also feels like Robert Saleh should be considered for this job, even though the Steelers have yet to request an interview with him. Would Jesse Min

Poni is still coming down from the high he got once we heard the news of Mike Tomlin stepping down after Monday night’s loss to the Texans. He said it’s fun that we actually get to talk about this and it’s not all just a hypothetical this time. Should we be as excited as we are though? The guys talked about people having second thoughts. What would we prefer – previewing a game or having the chance to talk about the next head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers?

PM Team FULL Show 1-15-26

Chris Hoke told the midday show that the Steelers should trade TJ Watt. The guys connected that to the Mike DeFabo story that came out earlier today about the players sobbing over Mike Tomlin stepping down as the Steelers head coach. We also got JJ Watt chirping Poni. Shouldn’t Watt want to play for a team that can win it all now as his career turns to the back nine? Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo from the PG joined the show. Ray said there will not be an attempt by the Steelers to tank or take a step back to take a couple steps forward. Ray said the arrow is now pointing to 2027 for a QB in the draft because the guys just aren’t there this year and the Steelers are selecting 21st. Ray said the Steelers should approach both TJ Watt and Cam Heyward as trade pieces this off-season. Ray said the Steelers’ job is attractive due to stability, but the Ravens probably have the best situation since they already have Lamar Jackson in-place. Ray gets the feel that the Steelers have a lot of respect for Sean McVay g