When Marcus Freeman announced his return to Notre Dame, the sense was multiple teams were interested in speaking with him. The Pittsburgh Steelers were one of them, according to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini.

The Steelers held internal discussions about Freeman in the event Mike Tomlin chose to step away, Russini reported Saturday. She added three other teams – the New York Giants, Tennessee Titans and Cleveland Browns – had similar conversations.

Ultimately, Freeman chose to “run it back” at Notre Dame in 2026, he announced via social media. This is the second straight offseason his name came up in connection with NFL openings after the Chicago Bears expressed interest in speaking with him last year, NFL Network reported at the time.

This offseason, the Giants were notably expected to have interest in speaking with Freeman after firing Brian Daboll, NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo reported. The sense was Freeman would be one of the top college coach candidates for NFL openings if he chose to listen.

“Marcus Freeman, mentioned as a guy that should be in their coaching search,” Garafolo reported Dec. 21. “Yes, that is the case and I expect him to be the foremost among the college candidates.”

With his announcement, Freeman also signed a restructured contract at Notre Dame which now runs through 2031, Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde reported. The deal will put him in the “top tier” of coach salaries as he prepares for his fifth season as Fighting Irish head coach in 2026.

More on Marcus Freeman’s tenure at Notre Dame

Since taking over for Brian Kelly in 2022, Marcus Freeman has a 43-12 record and helped lead Notre Dame to a national championship appearance in 2024. This year, the Fighting Irish went 10-2 and just missed the College Football Playoff, which led the team to decide not to play in a bowl game. They would have played in the Pop-Tarts Bowl against BYU, On3’s Brett McMurphy reported.

In addition to the on-field success, Freeman and Notre Dame put together a decorated recruiting class this cycle. The Fighting Irish have the No. 2-ranked class in the nation from the 2026 cycle, according to the Rivals Industry Team Recruiting Ranking. That group includes four five-star recruits, headlined by EDGE Rodney Dunham – the No. 17 overall player, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking.

Notre Dame is also active in the transfer portal after the two-week window opened Friday. On3’s Pete Nakos had more details about a top defensive prospect expected to visit the Irish in the coming days.