Pittsburgh coach Mike McCarthy suffers injury during Steelers' game vs. Buccaneers

Oct 18, 2026 at 3:03 pm ET • 1 min read

Instead of spending halftime in the locker room, Steelers coach Mike McCarthy spent it in the medical tent after he sustained an ankle injury at the conclusion of the first half. 

McCarthy was starting to make his way to the locker room when he started limping and had trouble walking. He was then assisted off the field and into the blue medical tent. He did not speak to the Steelers at halftime.

Despite the injury, McCarthy returned to the sideline for the start of the second half. He has also resumed his duties as the team's offensive playcaller. According to the CBS Sports broadcast team, McCarthy twisted his ankle, but it's unclear exactly when or what caused it. 

McCarthy's injury capped off what was a lousy first half for the Steelers, who trailed 13-3 at the intermission. Pittsburgh committed several mental errors in the first half, including Darnell Washington's juggling of an Aaron Rodgers pass, which was ultimately picked off by A'Shawn Robinson. The pick set up the game's first score, a 43-yard field goal by Chase McLaughlin. 

The Steelers' offense gained just 102 yards in the first half. They were just 1-of-6 on third down and 0-of-1 on fourth down. 

Jalon Daniels, the Buccaneers' undrafted rookie quarterback, dominated the Steelers in the first 30 minutes. Daniels completed nine consecutive passes at one point and recorded the game's first touchdown on a short touchdown pass to Emeka Egbuka.