With the Pittsburgh Steelers officially one and done in the playoffs once again, all eyes are on the offseason plan. Fans are fed up by another lackluster end result, and Mike Tomlin is rightfully in the cross hairs.
With a generally weak coaching class overall, teams in need of a new head coach are seemingly struggling to find the right fit. This has led to a lot of speculation on some potential coaching trades.
Tomlin should be heavily involved in those rumors.
From Pittsburgh needing a fresh start to other teams wanting the stability that Tomlin provides, a potential coaching trade could make a lot of sense. While still not overly common, we have seen a small uptick in coaching trades recently.
Tomlin would have plenty of suitors, and if Pittsburgh was wise, they would be exploring them heavily right now.
The Pittsburgh Steelers can’t look past a potential Mike Tomlin trade
This wouldn’t be the first time Tomlin was involved in trade talks. Heck, the Bears supposedly called last offseason to test out those waters. Another year of the same result and Pittsburgh could be open to moving the long-standing coach.
In particular, a team with a quarterback in place would make a lot of sense. Taking out the AFC North teams (as the Steelers would never trade Tomlin to either spot no matter the price), one job sticks out: the Arizona Cardinals.
While no longer the infamous “Steelers West” that they were roughly ten years ago, Tomlin would look good in Arizona red. The pieces are there for Tomlin to succeed.
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You have an established, albeit underachieving quarterback in Kyler Murray. Tomlin has said he wants an athletic quarterback, and that fits the bill. The offense as a whole has a lot of pieces already. The defense needs work.
Tomlin would like that challenge given his background. He would be able to have his hands all over in recreating that defensive roster.
For Arizona, they would get an option that raises their floor significantly. Tomlin has his faults, but his biggest claim to fame is his ability to have constant success. The Cardinals are in desperate need of some stable seasons.
The framework of the trade seems straightforward. Typically, head coaches fetch a mid-to-late first round pick. That means I can’t see the Cardinals sending the third pick overall straight up for Tomlin.
A first round pick swap though? That is far more likely. Sure, there may be some other picks involved, but the meat and potatoes would be the Cardinals moving down 18 spots to land their coach. The Steelers, meanwhile, land a top three pick.
Unfortunately, they would likely still miss out on the top two quarterbacks, but perhaps you can use that pick for the future. A draft day trade down could land you a haul for 2026 and 2027, meaning you have more ammo to get the right guy.
Or, perhaps you land a blue chip prospect to build around. The needs don’t currently line up with the top names, but that can change in a few months. Regardless, having the third overall pick would be huge.
If Arizona comes calling, the Steelers need to listen. Tomlin has obvious value, and while the team risks not finding the right coach in a bad hiring cycle, getting a haul for an underachiever would be well worth the risk.