Mike McCarthy

McCarthy was married to his high school sweetheart, Christine, before they amicably divorced in 1995. He married Jessica Kress on March 15, 2008, and they have five children between them, including two daughters together.

McCarthy and Jessica established the McCarthy Family Foundation, which supports charitable organizations and community projects. Its beneficiaries have included the American Family Children's Hospital, the MVP Foundation, the Green Bay Police Foundation, and the Seven Loaves Project in Rwanda.

McCarthy was born and raised in Pittsburgh's Greenfield neighborhood and grew up as a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. His father, Joe McCarthy Jr., worked as a firefighter and police officer and owned Joe McCarthy's Bar and Grill. His mother, Ellen McCarthy, worked as a secretary, in restaurants, and for the Peace & Justice Center.

After attending Salem University and Scottsdale Community College, McCarthy transferred to Baker University in Kansas. He played tight end, earned two all-conference selections, captained the team in 1986, and graduated with a bachelor's degree in business administration in 1987.

McCarthy began coaching in 1987 as a graduate assistant at Fort Hays State, where he focused on linebackers and defensive ends while completing a master's degree in sports administration. He returned to Pittsburgh in 1989 as a volunteer graduate assistant, later becoming the university's wide receivers coach in 1992. During the off-season, he worked as a Pennsylvania Turnpike toll collector while continuing to study football.

In 1993, McCarthy joined Marty Schottenheimer's Kansas City Chiefs as an offensive quality control assistant. He became the team's quarterbacks coach in 1995 and worked with Joe Montana, Rich Gannon, Elvis Grbac, and Steve Bono. He then coached quarterbacks for the Green Bay Packers in 1999 before becoming offensive coordinator for the New Orleans Saints from 2000 to 2004 and the San Francisco 49ers in 2005.

McCarthy was named the NFC Assistant Coach of the Year by USA Today in 2000 after helping the Saints achieve a 10-6 record and the first playoff victory in franchise history.

The Packers hired McCarthy as head coach in 2006. He led the team to eight consecutive playoff appearances from 2009 through 2016, including four straight NFC North titles from 2011 through 2014. He became the second-winningest coach in Packers history, behind Curly Lambeau, with 125 regular-season victories.

McCarthy's defining achievement in Green Bay came during the 2010 season. The Packers entered the playoffs as the NFC's sixth seed, defeated the Philadelphia Eagles, Atlanta Falcons, and Chicago Bears, and then beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 31-25 in Super Bowl XLV. The victory delivered Green Bay's first Lombardi Trophy since 1996 and came against McCarthy's hometown team.

During his Packers tenure, McCarthy worked with quarterbacks Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers won two Most Valuable Player awards while playing under McCarthy and passed for more than 4,000 yards in six seasons. McCarthy received the Motorola NFL Coach of the Year award in 2007.

The Packers dismissed McCarthy in December 2018 after 13 seasons. He finished his Green Bay tenure with a 125-77-2 regular-season record, a 10-8 postseason record, nine playoff appearances, and one Super Bowl championship.

After sitting out the 2019 season, McCarthy became the Dallas Cowboys' head coach in January 2020. He spent five seasons with Dallas and compiled a 49-35 regular-season record. The Cowboys reached the playoffs three times during his tenure and posted three consecutive 12-5 seasons from 2021 through 2023.

In 2023, McCarthy took over play-calling duties and guided the Cowboys to a top-five scoring offense. Dallas won 12 games for a third consecutive season, but lost to the Packers in the wild-card round. The Cowboys finished 7-10 in 2024 after quarterback Dak Prescott suffered a season-ending hamstring injury, and McCarthy left the organization in January 2025.

The Pittsburgh Steelers hired McCarthy as their head coach in January 2026. He became only the fourth Steelers head coach since 1969, following Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, and Mike Tomlin.

His appointment brought McCarthy back to the city where he was born and raised. The Steelers identified his extensive head-coaching record, offensive background, and work with quarterbacks including Joe Montana, Brett Favre, Aaron Rodgers, and Dak Prescott as central parts of his coaching profile.