Mike Tomlin leaves Pittsburgh as he entered, with dignity

AI-assisted summary
• After 19 seasons, Mike Tomlin has stepped down as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
• Tomlin made the decision to leave himself, rather than being fired by the organization.
• He leaves with a record of 201 wins, eight division titles, and one Super Bowl victory.
• Tomlin may take a break from coaching and potentially pursue a career in broadcasting.

Here’s to the Terrible Towel-waving fans at Acrisure Stadium who chanted for the firing of Mike Tomlin as Pittsburgh Steelers coach: You’ve got your wish. Sort of. He’s gone.

In the end, though, the mob wanting Tomlin’s head on a platter didn’t fully get their wish.

That’s because Tomlin fired himself.

He came to the storied franchise in 2007 with so much dignity as an under-the-radar rising star. He left with his dignity fully intact.

That is important, too, in assessing the journey for Tomlin, who stepped down as the NFL’s longest-tenured coach on Jan. 13. In a league with such a shabby track record for hiring Black coaches, he also became a symbol of just what can be achieved with equal opportunity, a walking example of the merits of the Rooney Rule, named for the man, late Steelers owner Dan Rooney, who hired him.

Regardless of race, dignity is hardly guaranteed in Tomlin’s intense, high-stakes profession – especially now, with the ‘absolute joke’ of an environment fueled by so many social media experts, as Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers called it – where coaches so often get kicked to the curb like yesterday’s trash.

No, Tomlin didn’t want to go out matching a dubious NFL record with seven consecutive playoff losses. If the last one, a thorough beatdown from the Houston Texans on Jan. 12, pushed him over the edge then so be it.

He still lasted 19 years and won 201 games. Never had a losing season and collected eight division titles. He won a Super Bowl and lost a Super Bowl.

And despite the fact it has been nearly a decade since the proud franchise (which displays six Lombardi Trophies in the lobby at team headquarters) last won a playoff game, Tomlin still could have returned in 2026 to try again. Now that’s some dignity.

Mike Tomlin decides it’s time – on his time

As Art Rooney II, the Steelers owner, explained it, he expected his Jan. 13 meeting with Tomlin to be another in a series of end-of-the-season sessions that began setting the course for the offseason. Like clockwork, habit and stability would suggest.

In other words, Tomlin, 53, wasn’t pushed out or asked to resign for the purpose of appearances. He was empowered to reach his own conclusion.

It’s time.

In one sense, the postseason results fueled the case for change. Tomlin had a hard time living up to his motto, “The standard is the standard.” Ask John Harbaugh. The inability to win big again was key to Harbaugh’s firing a week earlier after 18 seasons as Baltimore Ravens coach, which made him the NFL’s second-longest tenured coach. Good for Harbaugh, a class act, that he quickly landed with a fresh start as New York Giants coach.

In Tomlin’s case, it got worse after Ben Roethlisberger retired following the 2021 campaign, as the Steelers cycled through mediocre quarterbacking from the likes of Mason Rudolph, Mitch Trubisky, Kenny Pickett, Russell Wilson and Justin Fields. That matched the uninspiring input during that span from offensive coordinators Matt Canada and Arthur Smith. And the defense hasn’t been a consistent, championship-level unit, either.

When Rodgers arrived in June, he brought fresh hope – even when considering the aging quarterback was gearing up for a 21st season – that perhaps he could provide the missing piece for the equation. He and Tomlin seemingly made a perfect match as two monumental figures desperately seeking to recapture championship glory.

Well, we’ve seen how that worked out. Rodgers never produced as few points in a playoff game as was the case on Monday night. And the Steelers never suffered a worse home playoff loss. Ouch.

Now the Steelers – with three coaches since 1969 – can move on with a search to find the next Tomlin, Bill Cowher or Chuck Noll. The franchise’s tradition for allowing patience in sticking with its coach undoubtedly adds to the appeal for those seeking to land the job.

Yet it’s also time in another sense for Tomlin.

Tomlin will return to coaching when he wants to. Until then…

Time to reenergize. It was significant that Rooney maintained during his Jan. 14 press briefing that Tomlin’s decision to bolt wasn’t as much a football-related move as it was a family-related decision. Rooney also insisted that Tomlin, still contractually tied to the Steelers, isn’t looking to coach again any time soon.

Of course, Tomlin’s the only one who can fully explain his reason for walking away.

Yet I’m wondering whether the toll of his job – the pressure and tremendous leadership responsibilities were enveloped by what might have seemed like 167-hour work weeks – took enough of a toll. If burnout was a factor, Tomlin would be far from the first coach to feel that weight. If he decides to coach again in the future, the time to recharge his battery will be golden. Ask Sean Payton. In three seasons since his one-year, post-New Orleans hiatus, Payton has turned the Denver Broncos into the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs.

Sure, Tomlin is a football savant and like pretty much everyone in the coaching circle at his level, a workaholic who loved the nitty-gritty elements of the job. He’s also a man, a husband, father of three, son and then some.

After 19 years on his last job, and more years climbing the ladder to land that opportunity, nobody can knock his hustle. Tomlin has surely earned a break.

After all, if he indeed decides to coach again Tomlin – who took five of his last six teams to the playoffs – would be at least as hot as Harbaugh.

But there’s no rush. In the meantime, speculation that the gregarious Tomlin will land with a network has ramped up in a hurry. He’d bring presence, wisdom, witty one-liners and classic metaphors such as “two dogs, one bone.” We’ll see. There will be no shortage of potential suitors. Payton spent all of one year working for Fox Sports, while Cowher, Jimmy Johnson and Tony Dungy are Hall of Famers who opted for extended TV runs.

Knowing Tomlin, to some degree, I doubt that noise from the outside drove him away. The heat has always been part of the deal. And Tomlin, for everything that comes with his knack for relating to people as individuals, has long struck me as possessing such a sharp perception for assessing the bigger picture – not just in a football sense, but also from a real-world perspective. That’s one reason I’d suspect criticism from passionate fans probably rolled off his back.

As for the encore, well, it can wait.

Tomlin has earned the right to rearrange football amid the priorities of life. It’s time.

Contact Jarrett Bell at jbell@usatoday.com or follow on X: @JarrettBell