Patrick Graham Agrees to Steelers DC Contract, Joe Whitt Jr. Joins Mike McCarthy's Staff

The Pittsburgh Steelers have landed their next defensive coordinator.

Las Vegas Raiders DC Patrick Graham has accepted the defensive coordinator position on Mike McCarthy's staff, the Steelers announced Friday.

The Steelers also reportedly hired former Washington Commanders DC Joe Whitt Jr. as assistant head coach/secondary coach on Wednesday, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero:

Graham will replace Teryl Austin, who led the Steelers' defense for the last four seasons under former head coach Mike Tomlin.

Graham overlapped with McCarthy for one year in Green Bay, where McCarthy was coaching when Graham served as linebackers coach and run coordinator in 2018.

He went on to take defensive coordinator jobs with the Miami Dolphins and New York Giants before he was hired by the Raiders in 2022.

The Raiders went through three coaches over Graham's four years with the franchise, going through Josh McDaniels and Antonio Pierce before hiring Pete Carroll ahead of the 2025 season.

Graham started out in 2022 by running a base 3-4 defense, although he at times adapted that to 4-3 in an effort to find a best fit for Maxx Crosby, per The Athletic's Ted Nguyen.

His most successful season as DC came in 2023, when those adaptations helped the Raiders rank ninth in points allowed behind a defense starring Crosby, Nate Hobbs, Robert Spillane and Marcus Epps.

The Raiders have since ranked 25th in points allowed in back-to-back seasons. The franchise also hasn't used a day one or two pick on a defensive player in either of the last two drafts, and they ranked 22nd in spending on defensive players last season, per Over the Cap.

The Steelers, in contrast, fielded the most expensive defense in the NFL last season, per Over the Cap.

McCarthy could be hoping giving Graham the chance to work with a well-funded defense led by stars like T.J. Watt, Cam Heyward and Jalen Ramsey can help him find more success in 2026.

The Steelers will also hope Graham's experience with a 3-4 defense will help ease the transition into new leadership for Pittsburgh veterans like Watt and Heyward. McCarthy confirmed during his introductory press conference Tuesday that he saw staying with the Steelers' longtime defensive scheme as "important."