The Steelers' season was a tale of two teams. The first one was a plucky upstart underdog, where despite some bold coaching decisions, the team worked. The offense hadn’t looked that good for almost five years, and the defense was an attacking unit that limited opposing offenses. I said at the time that this team looked hard to beat, and I thought they were legitimate sleepers for a Super Bowl run if that level of play continued.
Then the gauntlet happened.
Everyone was aware of the brutal stretch where the team had to play the Eagles, Ravens, and Chiefs over an 11-day span. Any team would struggle with a schedule like that, but an overperforming Steelers team could have overcome that. Even a 1-2 record but with competitive play was passable.
Instead, this team shrank to the occasion and fell apart. While the offense was without its top weapon, there was no viable game plan to survive without him. Each week the offense started off games at an identical and predictable pace, and the once efficient offense was suddenly back in its shell. It looked like they had given up.
The defense fared even worse. They were suddenly giving up constant yards and failing to get key stops. Offenses were putting up points at an alarming rate, and with the offense withering, the defense did nothing to help them out. It was a failure all around.
There was a small light at the end of the tunnel with a chance for a rebound game against the Bengals. Instead of looking like the Steelers of old, the same mediocre team came in and lost that game as well.
That four-game slide took this team from the third seed in the playoffs to the sixth seed. Unsurprisingly, this team folded in the playoffs and once again, they did just enough to have a respectable season but failed to do enough to actually win in January.
Steelers need to set some hard deadlines with Mike Tomlin
While I am not the harshest critic of Mike Tomlin, this collapse down the stretch looks like a classic move for him. The despicable playoff loss against the Ravens was the cherry on top. Despite many elements not working, this team refused to change, and it killed them. Losing your last five games is inexcusable, and the continued playoff struggles are frustrating.
I get that never having a losing season is something worth noting, but when that is the only accolade you can hang your hat on for almost ten years, it isn’t good enough. Tomlin isn’t a bad coach, but you can make the argument that the game has passed him by. At the end of the day, this long stretch without playoff success is a hard pill to swallow.
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A similar case was Marvin Lewis with the Bengals. He enjoyed a 16-year tenure there, with some mixed success. He brought stability to a team that needed it, but he struggled in the playoffs, and after a stretch of poor seasons mixed in with a failure to do anything notable in the postseason, he was let go.
Heck, look at arguably the greatest coach ever, Bill Belichick. He went five seasons without a postseason win and was let go. Granted, his team bottomed out in 2023, but for such a respected leader, he was given the heave once the franchise realized the game may be slipping past him.
To Tomlin’s credit, he never had the lows that either of the aforementioned coaches had, but his overall success pales in comparison to Belichick. Yes, he is a coach of the people, and players constantly cite him as a positive and a reason to come to the Steelers, but when it is only resulting in 9 or 10-win seasons with no playoff success, does it matter? Why does Tomlin get such a long leash?
No, I don’t think you need to fire Tomlin this season (nor do I think the team will fire him either). That said, I have been a strong advocate for an ultimatum to be made for the past few seasons. Win in the playoffs, or you will be let go. It may not be the “Steelers way” of doing things, but right now, the Steelers way isn’t working.
We’ve seen him go the rookie route at quarterback and then the shake-up last year, and the results were similar. There is little reason to think that this team is going to suddenly come alive with the current regime in place. Unless they get lucky and find the next league-changing quarterback, Tomlin has proven that he can’t get over this hump.
I think the team needs to provide a clear goal for 2025, and if that goal isn’t met, then a change at head coach has to happen. If Tomlin changes some of his ways and gets this team back into contender status, great, he has earned his job. If he doesn’t, you can’t keep settling for mediocrity. Something will have to give.