Pittsburgh Steelers rotate weekly captains to build leadership
The Pittsburgh Steelers are using a weekly rotating-captain system under first-year head coach Mike McCarthy. In his Nov. 7, 2026, team feature “Four-Down Territory: Captains’ log,” contributing writer Brian Batko detailed how McCarthy and his staff select three captains each game to represent offense, defense and special teams. The selections are deliberate, with coaches citing factors such as matchups, hometown ties and players facing former teams when naming captains.
Early-season choices included Aaron Rodgers and Cam Heyward as delegates for the opener, joined by Carson Bruener. Since then the staff has used the captain nod for situational leaders such as Pat Freiermuth on a trip to New England, Zach Frazier against the Bengals, Jamel Dean at Tampa Bay and Brock Hoffman against Cleveland. Defensive lineman Keeanu Benton, who served as a captain against the Browns, said, “I’m not a young guy anymore. I was grateful to have been chosen as a captain.” Benton emphasized that it was meaningful to be recognized by the coaching staff.
Several captain choices coincided with notable plays and performances. In one game Zach Frazier matched up with Cincinnati’s Dexter Lawrence while Ben Skowronek recovered a muffed punt and caught a 23-yard touchdown pass from Rodgers. Payton Wilson led the team in tackles and tackles for loss while Yahya Black made plays in the backfield as the Steelers contained Indianapolis Colts star Jonathan Taylor. Jamel Dean recorded an interception against his former team and Patrick Queen had a team-high 10 tackles and the game-sealing sack when he served as captain in Paris.
The Steelers have struggled to finish drives in the red zone despite a four-game win streak. The team has scored a touchdown on 50 percent of red-zone trips, tied for 26th in the NFL, and it is tied for 29th in touchdown percentage in goal-to-go situations. “Probably all of it,” Angelichio said when asked whether play-calling, personnel deployment and the run game factor into red-zone efficiency. Angelichio added that the staff is evaluating whether they have the right plays and are putting players in positions to succeed.
The Steelers have been stronger defensively near the goal line. They rank first in the AFC and second in the NFL in red-zone defense at 37.5 percent and are 54.6 percent in goal-to-go defensive situations, and they are ninth in the NFL in third-down defense at 34.3 percent. Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said big plays will happen and the unit did not panic during a goal-line stand that resulted in a turnover on downs against the Cleveland Browns. Graham said red-area stops are his measure of mental toughness.
Batko’s feature highlighted heads-up plays such as left tackle Troy Fautanu’s second fumble recovery of the season. Fautanu dove on a loose ball after Rico Dowdle lost control on a 14-yard run to preserve a red-zone opportunity that produced a field goal. Had the Browns recovered, they could have stopped the drive and taken the ball back trailing 10-3 with a chance to tie. The feature noted Fautanu is one of only three linemen with more than one fumble recovery this season.
NFL Sports Blog Take
Rotating captains gives the Pittsburgh Steelers a way to broaden leadership and recognize players who can influence a single-game plan. Batko’s examples show the approach has coincided with individual performances and situational plays that helped the team. The defense’s strong red-area and third-down numbers reflect situational toughness while the offense’s 50 percent red-zone touchdown rate points to an area for improvement. Maintaining the captain-rotation approach could strengthen locker-room bonds as coaches work to improve scoring efficiency.