The Pittsburgh Steelers flew to France on Thursday night, and the storm that hit Paris on Friday wiped out their plan to walk through at the Stade de France after landing. Head coach Mike McCarthy, speaking at the team hotel on Friday, said the call had to be made before the plane touched down. “We had two plans coming in. Just really wanted to activate the players, you know, after the long flight,” he said. “We had to make the decision before we landed. … But frankly, driving by it, I wish we would have stopped.”
“The oldest team that I’ve been the head coach of”
The Steelers stayed in Pittsburgh until Thursday, while the New Orleans Saints have been in France since Monday. McCarthy said the staff tried to bank sleep early in the week. “We tried to work the front end of the schedule, just give them more time to sleep, you know, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday going into the trip,” he said. After that, the plan was to sleep as much as possible on the flight and get onto a normal schedule after 6 p.m. local time. He said he got a little sleep himself.
Asked whether arriving late is an advantage, he said: “I think it’s really personal preference.” He added: “Hell, I’d like to be in France for a week. I mean, personally. But I’ve never been here before.” He said the schedule, a trip to Tampa followed by a division game against the Cleveland Browns next week, and the age of his roster shaped the choice. “We are a veteran team,” he said. “This is the oldest team that I’ve personally been the head coach of.”
Elliott is back
On Saturday, the Steelers activated safety DeShon Elliott from injured reserve. He missed the first six games of the season. McCarthy had said on Friday that the decision would be made official after Saturday’s practice. “DeShon Elliott, he’s one of our leaders, number one,” McCarthy said. “Just to watch him fight back from this injury, I think he’s definitely someone you root for. … It’s been a long road back, but he’s a big part of what we’re about in Pittsburgh.” The team also elevated receivers Brandon Johnson and Brandon Smith from the practice squad for the game.
McCarthy said T.J. Watt’s calf was not a worry. Asked whether it was concerning, he said: “I would say no.” Watt has no injury designation. Defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day went on injured reserve on Thursday, which McCarthy called “a medical decision, number one.” He said he has “great confidence” in his young players: “The history will show that they’re playing in the biggest games of the year come November, December, and here we are in Paris.”
Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who rejoined McCarthy and Aaron Rodgers when the Steelers signed him to the practice squad on Tuesday, practiced on Thursday. “Looked good in practice yesterday,” McCarthy said. “Looked like he stepped right in like he never left. You just see the way the guys reacted to him.”
Rodgers: “More gray hair for sure”
Asked how Rodgers compares with the quarterback he coached in Green Bay, McCarthy said: “He’s got more gray hair for sure. But no, he’s playing well. I’m frankly amazed on how well he still throws the ball.” He said Rodgers still felt some effects of his injury from his time with the New York Jets when he arrived in the spring, but is now moving well. “His instincts, awareness, intelligence and understanding is off the charts,” McCarthy said. “We play through his eyes.” Asked how he handles disagreements with Rodgers, he said: “I just try to do it with a smile. … We go back to ’06 and I care deeply about him.”
McCarthy, who grew up in Pittsburgh, called coaching the Steelers “beyond a dream come true.” Asked to compare the Steelers with the Packers and Dallas Cowboys, his two previous teams, he said the two teams he had as a kid playing electric football were the Steelers and the Browns. “I’d like to sit here and tell you a story about writing a third grade essay about I’m going to grow up and be the head coach of three NFL franchises, but that would be a lie,” he said. “I was like every kid in Pittsburgh. I dreamt of playing for the Pirates or playing for the Steelers.”
He called the first regular-season game in France “a big deal for us.” “We know we got excellent competition in the Saints,” he said. “You have to win these games in October as you get into these winter months.”
Kellen Moore: “It’ll be awesome”
Saints head coach Kellen Moore, in an interview with team reporter John DeShazier posted on Saturday, said the early trip has helped. “It’s been beneficial for us to get out here quickly early in the week,” he said. “Our guys were able to get acclimated to the time zone, the weather, and just have a really good work week.”
Asked about the chance of wind or rain on Sunday, Moore said the Saints have already practiced in it. “We’ve practiced in it for three days now, and our guys have had great practices,” he said. “These have been as energetic and as enjoyable practices as we’ve had all year. … There may be some wind, there may be some rain, it may turn into a sunny day, who knows, but it’ll be awesome.”
On Rodgers, Moore said: “For a long time in this league, he’s been able to control the game at the line of scrimmage and the different things that he’s seen. He’s seen it all, and so we’re going to play really sound football, make it as hard and as stressful as we can on them.” His French so far, he said, is “bonjour” and “merci.”
The 4-2 Steelers are the designated road team against the 2-4 Saints. Kickoff at the Stade de France is 2:30 p.m. in Paris on Sunday, which is 9:30 a.m. ET and 4:30 p.m. in Cairo. Guard Cesar Ruiz and defensive tackle Nathan Shepherd are questionable for New Orleans, and nobody has been ruled out.
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