Pittsburgh Steelers Request Interview with Rising Star in Coaching Industry

After 19 seasons of not having a losing season, the Pittsburgh Steelers are now searching for a new head coach again. Though, Mike Tomlin’s decision to step down didn’t come as a huge shock for a team that hasn’t won a playoff game since 2016. In other words, the Steelers were likely somewhat prepared to hunt for a new coach.

Now that work is getting done in the public instead of in the shadows, and a list of interview candidates has emerged. While Pittsburgh has yet to officially interview any of their candidates, they’ve already begun making requests.

On Wednesday, roughly 24 hours after Tomlin stepped down, the Steelers put in a request to interview Los Angeles Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter.

Like Tomlin’s Steelers, Minter’s Chargers were just eliminated from the playoffs this past weekend, suffering a 16-3 defeat to the New England Patriots. However, Minter has been viewed as a rapidly rising star in the coaching industry for a few years now.

The 42-year-old spent 11 years in various coaching roles in college football before joining the Baltimore Ravens as a defensive assistant from 2017-18. He then became the assistant DBs coach in 2019 and the primary DBs coach in 2020.

In 2021, Minter got his third job as a defensive coordinator, this time with Vanderbilt after previously leading Indiana State and Georgia State’s defense for a total of six seasons. In 2022, Jim Harbaugh hired Minter as his defensive coordinator at Michigan, where he helped the Wolverines win the College Football National Championship in 2023.

A year later, Jim brought Minter with him to the NFL when Harbaugh accepted the Los Angeles Chargers’ head coaching job. Minter managed to lead the NFL’s best scoring defense in 2024 and maintained that unit’s success by ranking ninth in 2025.

Now, he’s on the wishlist of several NFL organizations as a potential head coach. With how well his defenses have performed, Minter has earned a shot at the top.

Related: Top Def. Coordinator Quickly Linked to Pittsburgh Steelers Coaching Job

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