It’s Wednesday, which means it’s time for a weekly Steelers links roundup at BTSC. But first, let’s take a look around the AFC North:
- DT D.J. Reader underwent physical with Ravens, could sign after draft (Baltimore Beatdown)
- Bengals appear likely to draft a cornerback early in the NFL Draft (Cincy Jungle)
- Browns open to a ‘fresh start’ with QB Deshaun Watson (Dawgs by Nature)
Now, onto some Steelers news and discussion:
Rookie Recap: Derrick Harmon
(From Steelers.com’s Teresa Varley): Despite missing five games due to injuries, Harmon was still a dominant force for the defense.
“For me, it was kind of tough because I haven’t been a type of guy that got injured a lot,” said Harmon. “And I came to the NFL, and it happened twice in my rookie year, so it’s kind of hard.
“But
it’s part of the game, so I’ve just got to stay optimistic and really just stay on course.”
Harmon finished his first season in the NFL with 16 total tackles and three sacks across 11 games played.
‘I have a lot of confidence in my ability’
(From Steelers.com’s Mike Prisuta): “I’ve been around the block a few times and I’m very comfortable in my own skin. And I’m not gonna lie to you, I love being a full-time dad. I’ve been able to do it twice, in ’19 and this past year. The year off was very, very rewarding for me, (Steelers head coach Mike McCarthy said).
“This opportunity, just the way it came about, I had to come back. If there was ever a no-brainer opportunity in my lifetime, this was it. But definitely, I have a lot of confidence in my ability.”
McCarthy’s interviews have echoed a similar theme this year: He appreciated his time off, but feels confident in his ability to return to the NFL and build a contender despite how his last year in Dallas ended.
NFL Draft construction kicks off in Pittsburgh, transforming the North Shore
(From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ’s Madaleine Rubin): On the North Shore, the Draft Theater is coming next.
The NFL on Saturday officially started building the massive structure — where teams will select players during a live broadcast — in parking lots surrounding Acrisure Stadium. The stadium itself will be open to fans, with activities held on the field throughout the three-day event from April 23-25.
“We’ve been really looking forward to showcasing Pittsburgh on a global scale with the NFL Draft,” said Steve Farago, NFL director of event operations.
This article provides a good overview of the upcoming construction and closures in Pittsburgh, as well as the expected impact hosting the event will have on the city. Pittsburgh’s draft campus will be split in two, with events at and around Acrisure Stadium as well as Point State Park.
Mike McCarthy’s coaching tree keeps growing. Will his first Steelers OC find similar success?
(From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac): In 19 years as head coach, Mike Tomlin never had a coordinator he hired be promoted to a head coach. The only assistant he ever hired to be promoted to a coordinator was Brian Flores, who had already been a head coach. His coaching tree was as barren as a maple in November.
Not so with Mike McCarthy.
The article highlights McCarthy’s two latest offensive coordinators pre-Pittsburgh — Brian Schottenheimer and Kellen Moore, who each received head coaching gigs.
Steelers must get massive match up nightmare extended before his price rises
(From Still Curtain’s Joshua Queipo): A year later, Smith has been cut, and Pittsburgh has moved on to a new head coach and offensive philosophy. Speaking of that philosophy, in 2022, when Mike McCarthy had two quality tight ends in Dalton Schultz and Jake Ferguson, they ranked 8th in 12 personnel usage. Four years later and now in Pittsburgh, he once again has a quality one-two pairing to complement their receiving duo of D.K. Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr.
The Steelers have several extension-deserving members of their 2023 draft class, including Joey Porter Jr., Darnell Washington, and Nick Herbig, who haven’t yet received second contracts with the team.
Detroit Lions Sign Former Jets, Steelers Safety Chuck Clark
(From Sports Illustrated’s Christian Booher): On Tuesday, which marked the second day of the NFL’s annual league meetings, the Lions agreed to a contract with safety Chuck Clark. Terms of the contract were not immediately disclosed.
Clark played 437 defensive snaps for the Steelers in 2025, logging 51 total tackles. He’ll now be joining the Lions, but the Steelers have already revamped their safety room for 2026, adding Jaquan Brisker while Darnell Savage is still expected to sign.
Art Rooney II: Despite Legal Challenge, Rooney Rule is Here to Stay
(From Steelers Now’s Alan Saunders): Rooney said that the attention of the Florida attorney general meant that discussions were had among the owners in Phoenix this week, but that they determined that the rule, which is not regarding hiring decisions, only interviews, is not against the law, and still enjoys the significant support of NFL ownership.
The rule was challenged by Florida attorney general James Uthmeier earlier in the month, but the sentiment from NFL brass at the league’s annual meeting doesn’t seem to be overly concerned.
NFL votes to exempt Friday games from short-week restrictions
(From Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper): That’s significant because teams are limited to two short-week games a year and opening up Fridays allows more flexibility for moving teams into standalone slots on the schedule. Some of those slots will come on Christmas this year because the holiday falls on a Friday and the league is expected to have multiple games that day.
The NFL schedule should look a bit different in 2026, with the NFL updating Friday game rules as well as removing overlapping Monday night games.
What do you think of the NFL’s new scheduling rules?
The double Monday night games have always been a bit much, and having some overlap was an unforced error by the NFL. Hopefully the doubleheaders go away entirely, but the new change is a step in the right direction.
But the Friday rules? That’s a larger can of worms. It could be the NFL starting to launch a new Friday night football product, but it also opens up more Thursday Night Football availability for teams who were losing eligibility due to holiday-related Friday games, which are definitely to become more of a mainstay moving forward.
In the short term, that should help out Thursday Night Football matchups with better teams available, and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t appreciate the odd Friday night kickoff just to have more football.
But too much NFL can absolutely be a bad thing — it seems that teams play worse in the weird time slots, and the rapidly growing list of kickoff times and watching options has made it harder than ever to make room in our schedules to catch the games we want to watch.
The new rules aren’t anything incredible or horrible — but it does mark the next step in a trend of the NFL expanding its watching options. Maybe too much.
What do you think of the NFL’s new scheduling rules? Join the BTSC community and let us know in the comments!
