The Pittsburgh Steelers franchise has had 16 head coaches throughout its history. Founded as the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1933,[1] the name was changed to the Steelers prior to the 1941 season to celebrate the city's heritage of producing steel.[2] Joe Bach served two separate terms as head coach and Walt Kiesling served three separate terms. During the 1943 and 1944 seasons, due to the number of players who fought in World War II, the Steelers combined their team with Philadelphia and Chicago, respectively.[2] During these seasons, Kiesling shared coaching duties with Greasy Neale and Phil Handler,[3] who have not been included within this list.
Struggling[clarification needed] for much of the franchise's early years, the team's first season with more wins than losses was coached by Jock Sutherland in 1942.[2] In 1947, under Sutherland, the Steelers played their first playoff game against the Philadelphia Eagles.[2] Ten of the 16 head coaches spent their entire professional coaching careers with the franchise, including Kiesling, John McNally, and Chuck Noll, who have also been voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.[4] One of only four men to coach the same team for 23 years, Noll retired in 1991.[2] Bill Cowher, who was Noll's replacement, coached the Steelers to their fifth Super Bowl victory, in 2005 and was voted into the Hall of Fame in 2020. The Steelers' sixth Super Bowl win came in Super Bowl XLIII, while head-coached by Mike Tomlin,[2] the team's current head coach.[5][6] As of 2023, the Steelers have had only three head coaches in the last 55 years.
List of head coaches
| # | Number of coaches[7] |
| GC | Games Coached |
| W | Wins |
| L | Loses |
| T | Ties |
| Win% | Winning percentage |
| † | Elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a coach |
| ‡ | Elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a player |
| ^ | Elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as the NFL Commissioner |
| * | Spent entire NFL head coaching career with the Steelers |
| + | Highest winning percentage in franchise history |
Coaches
- Note: Statistics are accurate through the end of the 2023 NFL season.
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Footnotes
- a Bach's full coaching record with the Steelers is 48 regular season games coached with a record of 21–27 and a W–L percentage of .438.
- b Kiesling's full coaching record with the Steelers is 90 regular season games coached with a record of 30–55–5 and a W–L percentage of .353.
- c In 1943 the Steelers combined with the Philadelphia Eagles to form the "Steagles", and Walt Kiesling shared the head coach position with Greasy Neale. In 1944 the Steelers combined with the Chicago Cardinals to form "Card-Pitt", and Walt Kiesling shared the head coaching position with Phil Handler.