After 19 seasons, Mike Tomlin made the somewhat shocking decision to step down as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers earlier this week after there Wild Card round loss against the Houston Texans.
Tomlin never had a losing season as the HC in Pittsburgh, something that will likely not be reciprocated for a very long time, if ever. That said, the Steelers last seven postseason appearances have resulted in first round defeats and Tomlin believed he wasn’t what was best for the organization moving forward.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler and Brooke Pryor did an inside look of what the last 24 hours was like for Tomlin leading up to his Tuesday team meeting, which is when he broke the news to his players and fellow coaches.
There seemingly was a lot of tears and player’s certainly did not lose belief that Tomlin was the right man for the job, but according to ESPN, a high-ranking source confirmed that Tomlin said, “you deserve better, and right now I can’t deliver… It’s best that I step down.”
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Tomlin made it clear that he does not intend to jump straight into coaching another team in 2026. According to ESPN sources, he emphasized that he will not be coaching next season, despite interest from several teams.
“I’m not interested in coaching anyone else’s team right now,” the sources recalled Tomlin saying.
Tomlin ranks among the NFL’s most successful and respected coaches of the 2000s era, and he is sure to generate significant interest in the coming offseasons if he chooses to return to coaching—a possibility that is certainly not out of reach for the 53-year-old.
For now, however, it appears he is ready to take some time away. Several reports have even suggested that he may consider a brief stint in broadcasting, similar to what Sean Payton and Bill Belichick did before returning to coaching.
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