The last line is it. He wasn't the Steelers best or worst candidate. Maybe we're overrating the other candidates. Poni (yeah I know, his reports are always wrong) said Shula had a bad interview and the Steelers didn't think Scheelhaase was ready to be a head coach. While that's easy to dismiss, McVay is the best coach in the NFL, maybe the rest of the NFL feels the same way the Steelers did.
Retreads: Harbaugh, McCarthy, Stefanski, Saleh
Stefanski is arguably the worst candidate on this list. I know a lot think he's some sort of offensive genius and he does have a playoff win while coaching from his basement--.446 win %. Saleh, geez, talk about a DC only, not HC. The Jets are also a joke of a franchise, but a .357 win %. Harbaugh couldn't win a Super Bowl with an MVP-level QB and the Giants are trusting him over the next offensive mastermind to develop Dart. Same with Saleh and No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward.
New hires: Minter, Hafley
Minter was a nepotism hire, previously working with the Ravens. His defensive qualifications are good, but if he didn't work for Baltimore does he get hired? Hafley was as well as Miami's new GM was with the Packers. Hafley was 22-26 at Boston College.
The Giants took the Steelers route.
Atlanta and Tennessee took a chance on coaches are good, their previous franchises were just awful.
The Ravens and Dolphins went with familiarity.
Buffalo interviewed Philip Rivers, how serious is that coaching search?
The Steelers needed to be more comprehensive in their search, there's no denying that. However, I think we may be giving these other teams too much credit in their search efforts and also, maybe the Rams assistants aren't as good as we thought.