Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is trying to get ahead of the curve before any more speculation about his job can be thrown out there. This comes less than 24 hours after Tomlin abruptly stormed away from the podium during his post-game press conference following the loss to the Buffalo Bills.
Tomlin was asked about the year remaining on his contract and, in frustration, before ESPN's Brooke Pryor could finish the question. Even before the ugly playoff loss in the Wild Card Round, there were whispers from Adam Schefter and others that the Steelers head coach could 'take some time off' following the 2024 season.
Now Tomlin is setting the record straight. According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, Tomlin has no such plans in mind. Instead, the long-time head coach plans to return for his 18th season as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
We have said all along that, if Mike Tomlin walks away, it will be on his own terms. If that offer still stands, he's not going anywhere during the 2024 offseason. Tomlin is expected to address his future to the media later this week.
Mike Tomlin isn't leaving, but that decision should no longer be his
As great as Coach 'T' has been in the past, what he did 15 or 16 years ago is no longer relevant to what is happening today. The fact of the matter is that the Pittsburgh Steelers are currently in a 7-year drought without so much as a single postseason win. To put this into perspective, 23 NFL teams have had more playoff success during this span.
In fact, if we go back further, the Steelers under Tomlin have just 3 playoff wins over the past 13 years. Bill Belichick, Pete Carroll, and Mike Vrabel each lost their head coaching jobs this offseason despite having playoff success more recently than Tomlin. Now it sounds like other notable names -- like Mike McCarthy and Nick Sirianni -- could be the next to go.
This is a results-based league, and Mike Tomlin's Steelers have not produced results when it matters most. At some point, team president Art Rooney II can no longer let Coach Tomlin dictate his own terms. He may be adamant about coming back and coaching out the final year of his contract (which runs through the 2024 season), but if ownership and the front office decide otherwise, he could be gone this offseason.
His lack of success in the postseason over the past seven years should no longer grant him immunity from losing his job.