Steelers Move Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham to Sideline, Beat Colts 34-22

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Patrick Graham left the press box and worked from the sideline at Acrisure Stadium on Sunday, and the team beat the Indianapolis Colts 34-22.

Graham had called the defense from the press-box level for the first four weeks of the season. Coach Mike McCarthy said the change was intended to fix communication problems, and that he had preferred to have Graham beside him on the sideline all along. The move came a week after outside linebacker T.J. Watt was seen shouting into a headset microphone to the defensive coaches upstairs.

"I just felt that we needed … it needed to be different," McCarthy said after the game. "The communication on game day is such a critical part to your success. I mean, you used to always talk about the Monday morning quarterback. You can't wait until Monday."

The defense appeared to respond. It held former All-Pro running back Jonathan Taylor to 45 yards on 15 carries. Indianapolis scored 15 of its 22 points on five field goals, including on three second-half drives that stalled in Pittsburgh territory, at the 4-, 22- and 10-yard lines.

Linebacker Payton Wilson, who led the team with 10 tackles, said Graham's presence helped the unit. "He just brought a sense of poise and just comfort," Wilson said. When the defense gave up an explosive play, he said, Graham was there to explain what happened and how it would be corrected. Linebacker Alex Highsmith echoed that view: "Having him down there just brings a lot of energy," he said, adding that Graham communicated with the players throughout the game.

Graham, 47, has been a defensive coordinator for eight years, with previous stops with the Dolphins in 2019, the Giants from 2020 to 2021 and the Raiders from 2022 to 2025. He has coached in the NFL since 2009, including a year in 2018 as linebackers coach and run game coordinator for the Green Bay Packers under McCarthy.

McCarthy said the staff had discussed since the preseason which coaches would work from the sideline. Assistant head coach Joe Whitt Jr., who oversees the secondary, also coached at field level Sunday.

In August, Graham said he favored the press box because it gave him a better view of the opposing offense's personnel groups, and because the calmer setting let him spread out his defensive call sheets in front of him.

McCarthy acknowledged the advantages of calling plays from upstairs but said communication is the priority. "There's nothing better than face-to-face communication," he said. He added that having coordinators and play callers on the field is "definitely the best case," while conceding that the box is an easier environment in which to lay everything out and manage more things.