Mike Tomlin delivers a blunt message to teams interested in trading for him

Cincinnati Bengals v Pittsburgh Steelers
Cincinnati Bengals v Pittsburgh Steelers | Joe Sargent/GettyImages

It was the press conference we had all been waiting to hear. After the Pittsburgh Steelers collapsed over the final month of the season and fell apart against the Ravens in the Wild Card round, Mike Tomlin faced the media for his postseason presser.

Beat reporters didn't let Tomlin off the hook easily, as he was asked about everything from what went wrong to what it would take for the Steelers to land another franchise quarterback. Toward the end of the press conference, ESPN's Brooke Pryor asked the Steelers head coach if he had a message for teams who may inquire about his services in a potential trade.

Tomlin's response was brief and to the point: "I have no message. Save your time."

When posing the question, Pryor was sure to mention Tomlin's no-trade clause. It appears the Steelers head coach is well aware of his job security with the team, and wouldn't even entertain the idea of coaching for any other team.

Steelers must remove ultimate power from Mike Tomlin

For the Pittsburgh Steelers, Mike Tomlin is the judge, jury, and executioner. What he says goes and his job was never in doubt—even after an eighth straight season that ended without a playoff win.

Because of the reputation he established early in his head coaching career in Pittsburgh, Tomlin knows that he's untouchable. That's why instead of giving any other response to the question, you could feel his frustration with simply being asked about the team potentially moving on from him.

Unfortunately, it's been glaringly obvious that Tomlin has had his hands in too many baskets over the years. In addition to being the head coach of the Steelers, Tomlin also played a significant role in the pre-draft process—hitting the scouting trail with the general manager every year. Tomlin also has a big say in the players that are brought in through free agency.

At this point he's become the emperor of the team. The Steelers need to fix that.

If Tomlin is sticking around as Pittsburgh's head coach—and that certainly appears to be the case—team president and owner Art Rooney II needs to pull back some of the power Tomlin possesses with the team. Because of the utter lack of postseason success, Tomlin needs to keep his hands out of the front office and focus on coaching. He's already trending down a path as the next Bill O'Brien... and nobody wants that.

If you were holding out hope that Mike Tomlin may be willing to seek a fresh start with a new team, his comments to the media abruptly put that idea to rest.

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