The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the most stable teams in all of sports, but the fan base has grown tired of the consistent mediocrity and lack of postseason success. It has been almost a decade since the last time Pittsburgh advanced in the playoffs, and every season seems to be a slightly different version of the one before it. There is always a losing skid, but there is also a stretch of games where the team gives the fan base hope that it can contend in the postseason. Currently, the Steelers are in the hopeful stretch of the season after beating the Baltimore Ravens and the Miami Dolphins in back to back weeks.
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Steelers' Mike Tomlin upset with officials on the sideline during a win over the Dolphins at home in 2025.
Pittsburgh is leading the way in the AFC North, but there is a very likely chance that the division is going to come down to a Week 18 matchup with the Ravens. The Steelers can clinch a spot earlier than that if the team can beat both the Detroit Lions and the Cleveland Browns over the next two weeks, while Baltimore loses one of their matchups. Either way, the outcome of the 2025 season is going to be interesting when it comes to Head Coach Mike Tomlin's future. The head coach signed an extension back in 2024. The deal runs through the 2027 season, but there is an option for the 2027 season that needs to be decided on by March 1st of the 2026 offseason.
If the organization picks up the option, the coach will be back for the 2027 season. However, if the organization decides against it, there is a chance the 2026 season could be Tomlin's last. NFL insider Jeremy Fowler has some information on the situation that he recently published on ESPN, and he shared that an extension for the coach is possible.
"Tomlin's contract runs through 2026 with an option for 2027, as ESPN's Adam Schefter reported," Fowler wrote. "Some of Tomlin's past deals have included an option, which is somewhat common in the NFL. Typically, the team has picked them up. They could do the same this offseason. But one source predicted, 'If they don't, and Tomlin has success in 2026, the team would most likely extend him.'"
The Steelers could decline the option for the 2027 season in order to have a way to move on from Tomlin after the 2026 season, and if the coach performs well and perhaps even leads his team to an evasive playoff victory, he could see a multi-year extension.
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Steelers' Mike Tomlin on the sideline during a brutal loss to the Buffalo Bills in 2025.
Not long ago were the stands of Acrisure Stadium screaming chants of "Fire Tomlin!" Now, two wins later, the fan base is optimistic about the group's chances to clinch a spot in the postseason. The AFC also seems to be relatively wide open, which means Pittsburgh might have its best chance to advance in the postseason. A playoff win this season and a decent year in 2026 could give Tomlin a new contract extension, and it would probably be set up the same way as his last one.
Steelers' Mike Tomlin Could Be Tied To Pittsburgh Until Nearly 2030
Following the 2024 season, Tomlin signed a three-year extension, with the final year on that deal being the option the organization must decide on during the 2026 offseason as mentioned. If Pittsburgh wins a playoff game, the final year of that deal will likely be picked up, which would set Tomlin up to sign an extension after the 2026 season. If that were the case, it would probably be another three-year deal with the final year being an option, and that would make the option-year the 2030 season.
AP Photo
Steelers Owner Art Rooney II (left) and Head Coach Mike Tomlin (right) oversee practice during the 2021 minicamp in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers could also decline the option and then sign Tomlin to an extension, which is the possibility that Fowler discussed he had heard from a source. If that is the case, the final year of a new Tomlin extension would be 2029.
What do you think about a potential extension for Tomlin? Let us know in the comments below!
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