On Tuesday, the Steelers announced that head coach Mike Tomlin was stepping away from coaching following a 10-7 season which saw the Steelers lose 30-6 in the AFC Wild Card to the Houston Texans and Tomlin reach 7 straight playoff losses tying the NFL record. The Steelers do retain the rights to Tomlin, making it possible that he could be traded this off-season if he chooses to coach instead of step away similar to the Sean Payton situation. The Steelers didn’t fire Tomlin, making him not able to be openly hired without a trade.
Tomlin, a career 193-114-2 head coach also holds 20 playoff appearances and is 8-12 in those regards including not winning a playoff game since 2016 and he hasn’t seen his team advance past wild card round since 2016 as well. Tomlin, who earned his claim with his elite defensive units has seen struggles there including his team rank higher than 15th in just two seasons since 2021 and not ranking inside the top 10 since 2020. During his time as Steelers head coach the defensive units have ranked top ten or higher in all but 10 seasons including 5 finishes as the number one defense in the NFL. Additionally, Tomlin saw success with his offenses in 2014-2018 ranking 2nd, 3rd, 7th, 3rd, and 2nd in that span but outside of an off 2007 season where they ranked 7th the Steelers have not ranked top ten any other point in his tenure which includes a stretch of 30, 24, 23, 23, 25, 23, 25 from 2019 to 2025. Additionally, the Steelers have not only struggled with hiring offensive coordinators but have struggled in their ability to identify and develop quarterbacks with the Steelers having Mason Rudolph, Devlin Hodges, Kenny Pickett, Justin Fields, Russell Wilson, and Aaron Rodgers as their starters since 2017 along with Ben Roethlisberger though Pittsburgh has consistently gone away from a rookie QB.
The Steelers have never had a losing record under Tomlin but the team’s consistent inability to identify young talent and develop has costed them numerous opportunities and with that likely at least one or two Super Bowl appearances at points with elite defensive units. Pittsburgh has seen a ton of star talent but the depth has has become a struggle for them as well. While Tomlin has a historic track record, and anchored what was an AFC powerhouse for nearly half a decade he’s not a fit for what the Raiders should be prioritizing. Las Vegas has attempted a “retread” head coach with Jon Gruden, Josh McDaniels, Antonio Pierce (kinda), and Pete Carroll and the time to go fully young is now. The Raiders are in the midst of being able to transition their franchise into a true upwards ascension with Fernando Mendoza at the helm and a young innovative offensive minded coach or offensive coordinator. Tomlin may land as a head coach in other spots needing a push over the top but for Las Vegas the fit doesn’t exist and they shouldn’t force something.
