A mini-rivalry reignites as Mike McCarthy returns home to lead Pittsburgh against a Jacksonville franchise that has famously spoiled the Steelers’ postseason dreams before.
The Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers aren’t rivals.
Still, the teams have shared some neat moments in their history with each other.
Pittsburgh and Jacksonville shared a division from 1995 to 2001, and some big things happened along the way.
1997 featured Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher nearly throwing a punch at Jacksonville’s Chris Hudson, as he was returning a blocked field goal for a game-sealing touchdown. Pittsburgh got its revenge later in the year, when a shovel pass from Kordell Stewart to Jerome Bettis got the Steelers an overtime win. In the 2000s, the Steelers had a decade of dominance, winning two Super Bowls. But Jacksonville was one of the few teams that seemed to have the Steelers’ number. From 2000 to 2007, the Jags were 6-4 against the Steelers.
One of those wins took place during Pittsburgh’s 2005 Super Bowl campaign, when a Rashean Mathis pick-six won it for Jacksonville in overtime.
In 2007, the warm-weather Jags had to go into the Pittsburgh cold twice in less than three weeks.
All they did was win both times, with the second one knocking the Steelers out of the playoffs and ending coach Mike Tomlin’s first season in disappointment.
Tomlin ended up staying in Pittsburgh for 18 more seasons, with that run coming to an end with his resignation in January. Now, the Steelers have another guy named Mike running the show. Mike McCarthy has been around a while. The 62-year-old (he’ll be 63 when the Steelers play the Jags in December) coached the Green Bay Packers from 2006-2018, winning a Super Bowl— against the Steelers, ironically enough— and having a street named after him in Green Bay as a result. After a year away from coaching, McCarthy went to “Jerry World” and took over the Dallas Cowboys where he went 12-5 three years in a row and then lost in the first round of the playoffs three years in a row.
A 7-10 season in 2024 led to Jerry Jones pulling the plug and making McCarthy a free agent.
As happened when he lost his job in Green Bay, McCarthy spent a year away from coaching.
So when Tomlin resigned, McCarthy was available, and the Steelers decided to bring the Pittsburgh native home.
The Steelers haven’t had a losing season since 2003, so if any franchise is a lock to be in the playoff race come Dec. 14, it's Pittsburgh.
Jags-Steelers is scheduled for Monday Night Football, with kickoff set for 8:15 on ESPN.
