Get to Know Eric Simonelli: How the Steelers’ newest quality-control voice learned to chase the details

The Steelers’ 2026 coaching staff includes a role that rarely makes headlines but often shapes what a team does on Sundays: offensive quality control. Eric Simonelli, now in that position in Pittsburgh, is the kind of staffer who spends his time on the unglamorous parts of preparation, translating film and tendencies into usable information for coaches and players.

Simonelli’s hiring places him in a familiar ecosystem. According to Steelers sources, he is in his first season with Pittsburgh as an offensive quality control coach. He enters the NFL in a seventh season, with his early work in Dallas spanning multiple quality-control and analytics duties. That background matters because quality control is not simply “extra film work.” It is a pipeline, where the staff’s learnings need to be consistent, organized, and fast enough to reach the people who install game plans.

Before Pittsburgh, Simonelli’s most recent stop was in the college ranks at TCU. Steelers materials describe him as having served as TCU’s assistant linebackers coach in 2025, a switch that is notable given his prior emphasis on quality control. College programs demand a different style of communication, and a linebacker-focused assignment can also sharpen how a coach thinks about pass-rush angles, leverage, and coverage flows, even if the job title in Pittsburgh is on the offensive side of the ball.

In Dallas, Simonelli’s responsibilities rotated through quality control, analytics, and coaching support roles that aligned with elite defensive production. Steelers’ coach bio notes that during one stretch, the Cowboys’ defensive line established itself as a top pass-rushing group, and it cites specific pressure and sack outcomes that season. It also highlights work that included player development and performance support, pointing to both team-scale results and individual production such as pressure totals and sack numbers for prominent defenders.

The decision to bring Simonelli to Pittsburgh also reflects how head coach Mike McCarthy has been assembling a staff with prior professional ties. Reporting from earlier in the offseason described the connection between McCarthy and Simonelli from their time together in Dallas, where McCarthy hired Simonelli into a quality-control role. That kind of continuity is a frequent advantage in coaching transitions, because it reduces the learning curve between the head coach’s system preferences and the staff’s daily workflow.

One thing to watch in Pittsburgh is how Simonelli’s “translation” role shows up during practice and in the game plan details. Offensive quality control jobs often determine how staff members frame tendencies, align coaching points, and refine how third-down and red-zone situations get scripted. If the Steelers are looking for precision and consistency as they modernize the process around the offense, Simonelli’s NFL track record suggests he will be focused on building repeatable, detail-heavy habits. The remaining question is how quickly his college coaching stint and his Dallas defensive-adjacent work will shape his approach to offensive preparation in Pittsburgh.

Finally, the Steelers’ own staff profile frames the position as more than analysis. It includes “best advice” content aimed at giving context for how Simonelli approaches the job, but the exact wording is not reproduced in the materials surfaced here. Still, the broader takeaway is clear: Simonelli’s career path mixes structured film study with coaching-side responsibilities, and that combination is often what separates an information role from a role that actually changes decisions.