The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the iconic franchises in the NFL. You could make a case that they’re one of the legendary teams in sports altogether. Whenever you think of the black and yellow, the Steelers come to mind right away. Think of all the legendary names who’ve played for this ball club. Mel Blount, Lynn Swann, Joe Greene, Jerome Bettis, Troy Polamalu, and Franco Harris. All of those names I listed are Hall of Famers. The Steelers have also had some popular coaches. Chuck Noll speaks for himself as does Bill Cowher. Mike Tomlin has been the Steelers head coach since 2007. Now, it looks like he’s not going anywhere anytime soon. Today, he signed a three-year contract extension through 2024.
Tony Dungy gave Mike his first coaching job with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a defensive backs coach. It was there that he learned the Tampa 2 defense. In 2006, the Minnesota Vikings hired him to be their next defensive coordinator. After that season, he became the Steelers head coach in 2007. Mike is one of the four best coaches in our league right now. I’ve watched him for years and he’s always had that calm, yet energetic demeanor about him. He’s involved with every aspect of his football team from the offensive group to the special teams. I admire how Mike gets his men pumped up. It’s a tough-love approach but deep down, you know he’s pulling for his guys of course. He’s a motivator. Or, as his players (former and current) say, he’s the leader of men. This is the coach you want to leave it all on the field for. Even when things were rough in 2019 without Ben Roethlisberger, Mike still kept his team afloat and in the playoff picture.
Since becoming the Steelers head coach, Mike has never compiled a losing record in 14 seasons. Nine playoff appearances, seven division titles, three AFC Championship Game appearances, two Super Bowl appearances, and one Super Bowl title that he led them to in just his second year as head coach. To this day, Mike is still the youngest head coach to win the Super Bowl at age 36. I will never understand why people want to get rid of him whenever something doesn’t go the correct way. Who can come in and duplicate the success of a Mike Tomlin?
