The NFL's coaching carousel continues to spin, with five out of 10 head coach openings still up for grabs. The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of those five teams still searching for a new HC, getting a late start due to Mike Tomlin not stepping down until after their Wild Card playoff loss to the Houston Texans.
With the Baltimore Ravens hiring Jesse Minter on Thursday, many of the top remaining coaches will have their eyes on the Steelers job. Names like Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula, Rams passing game coordinator Nathan Scheelhaase, and Vikings DC Brian Flores are all still in the mix to be the Steelers' choice.
One other name that is considered a long shot (despite having interviewed with the team twice now) is Miami Dolphins' DC Anthony Weaver, and if it were up to ESPN's Dan Orlovsky, he might already have gotten the job.
"Sign me up for Weaver in Pittsburgh!"@danorlovsky7 tells @PSchrags why he thinks Anthony Weaver is a perfect fit for the Steelers' head coaching position 💪 pic.twitter.com/3OzWNPrPlF
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) January 22, 2026
Dan Orlovsky endorses Dolphins DC Anthony Weaver as the Pittsburgh Steelers next HC
Appearing on ESPN's NFL Live, Orlovsky had this to say about Peter Schrager's report on Weaver having an excellent Zoom interview with the Steelers.
"Sign me up for Weaver in Pittsburgh, sign me up. I am a huge Weaver guy. I always see, I look at coaches and say, almost like quarterbacks. Do you take a bad roster and make them competent, or do you take a good roster and give us the chance to win a championship. I think he was a part of a lesser-talented roster in Miami, they fought every single week and played at a good level. Sign me up for that in Pittsburgh."
That is high praise from Orlovsky, and he makes several good points about what to look for in an HC candidate. I do have to push back on the "played at a good level" remark regarding the Dolphins' defense, however.
While the Dolphins did lack talent at multiple spots along their defense, the numbers don't paint a very favorable picture of his time in Miami. Our own Tommy Jaggi made that clear.
Miami's 2025 defensive ranks with Anthony Weaver as DC:
— Tommy Jaggi (@TommyJaggi) January 22, 2026
24th in DVOA
25th in EPA per play
24th in PPG allowed
22nd in YPG allowed
26th in yards per play allowed
Lack of talent or not, the results weren't there. Weaver has had a bottom-10 defense in 2 of his 3 seasons as a DC. https://t.co/j5X92W55dp
His relative lack of success as a DC doesn't mean he can't be a successful HC, but it means that he may need to thrive as a "CEO" brand of HC. Being the delegator and overall leader of the team, while allowing his coordinators to handle their respective sides of the ball.
Is that the type of HC the Steelers should be going after? Maybe, maybe not. There is no sure-fire strategy that guarantees success when hiring an HC. However, Weaver is a tick below the other remaining candidates still vying for the job.