Mike McCarthy anticipated that the first season of his coaching career with the Pittsburgh Steelers would be an orderly one. Four weeks into the campaign, and there are several aspects of the team’s game that need to be fixed. With a record of 2-2, the Steelers have just suffered a defeat at the hands of the Cleveland Browns. An altercation between Mike McCarthy and Aaron Rodgers has received more attention than the match itself. McCarthy has made his point clear with regard to the Steelers. They will not move ahead until their own problems are sorted out.
Mike McCarthy Says Pittsburgh Steelers Must Fix Their Own Problems First
“You have to play your best football each and every week to win in this league. Definitely play better than your opponent. So, that’s really part of why we’re going about tomorrow the way we’re going about it because we need to clean our own house. Our house is not clean right now,” McCarthy told reporters on Monday.
He was commenting during discussion of the self-scout of the team after four games. Pittsburgh is scheduled to have a 10-day break before playing again. This will enable the coaches to evaluate what has happened.
It must be admitted that the Steelers fought against Cleveland. Rodgers threw for 299 yards and three touchdowns. This made the Steelers stay competitive until the last quarter.
But there was a period where the offense struggled. The Steelers scored through a 17-play drive but did not score again until their seventh possession of the game. Only 101 yards were recorded during this time.
This was after Rodgers and McCarthy exchanged words. Rodgers was frustrated while waiting for a call from McCarthy. This exchange of words turned out to be the highlight of the game.
Mike McCarthy with some bad news https://t.co/K61ZK35d8K
— Mark Kaboly (@MarkKaboly) October 5, 2026
McCarthy later apologized for his language. Rodgers also clarified that the noise from the crowd was making things difficult to understand.
Aaron Rodgers And Mike McCarthy Now Face More Pressure Before Week 5
This is not just a matter of the struggles that have occurred between the quarterback and the coach. The fact that the Steelers are suffering injuries could lead to complications for the coming weeks.
Derrick Harmon will be going to the injured list because of his foot injury. Jamel Dean has some problems with his ankle while Rico Dowdle is recovering from his toe injury. DeShon Elliott is getting closer to returning to action.
McCarthy also wants improved results when it comes to third-down play and execution. This will have to improve before the Steelers face the Indianapolis Colts on October 11.
The Cleveland loss ended with Andre Szmyt making a 56-yard field goal.
McCarthy wants to see the Steelers focus on themselves before anything else. This will be proven by the upcoming game.