"All Titles, No Work": Bombshell Claim Exposes Steelers as A Paid Ghost Operation Under Mike Tomlin

The Pittsburgh Steelers have went through a complete regime change after now-former head coach Mike Tomlin stepped down after an embarrassing 2025 Wild Card loss. Tomlin transitioned to the media side of things and has halted coaching for the time being. He continued his streak for 19 consecutive non-losing seasons with the Steelers; however, a coveted playoff win hasn't come since 2017. The Black and Gold won the AFC North title and earned a home playoff game, where the team suffered a crushing defeat to the Houston Texans. After Tomlin stepped down, the organization went with a veteran head coach, Mike McCarthy, to take the reins. 

A key factor in the Steelers' failures in the 2025 season was the defensive scheming. Often, the defense was run all over, or there were some clearly broken plays. This was especially evident in the Week 18 matchup against the Baltimore Ravens, where consistent miscommunication and poor play design allowed for huge touchdowns. Thankfully, Pittsburgh went on to win that game, but it took some luck after a missed last-second field goal attempt. 

Former defensive coordinator Teryl Austin departed in the coaching staff change, and his poor scheming was a major concern. However, Tomlin was the man calling the plays on defense. Leaving him to blame for some of the inconsistencies in situational play-calling. Tomlin's leadership on defense stems from his days as a defensive coordinator with the Tampa Buccaneers prior to being the head guy in the Steel City. Former Steelers great James Harrison called out the coaching on his podcast, Deebo & Joe, with another former Steeler, Joe Haden.

"Dude, let's stop playing, bro. Nobody there did a job that was actually titled for him. That was run by somebody else. Everybody got a title and got paid for it, but very few people did the actual job of the title," Harrison said. 

Tomlin being as involved as he was on defense leads into what Harrison spoke on. Austin was primarily the scheme guy, making sure everyone was doing their job. But Tomlin made the game-time decisions. 

His play-calling in big moments and his sometimes questionable decision-making are reasons for the callout. The team's defense has plenty of good players on it, but the man behind a lot of the decisions, Tomlin, led the team to a somewhat mediocre defense in 2025. The unit relied a lot on the ability to create turnovers, which is hard to sustain.  

The Steelers were the third-worst defense in terms of passing yards allowed in 2025 and gave up a ton of chunk plays to opposing offenses. The unit's ability to strip the ball, pass rush, and big-time interceptions kept them in many games. 

The defense's ways were exposed in the playoffs, when they created three total turnovers, but allowed high plays to Texans receivers at times, and couldn't stop the run, though the offense was no better for Pittsburgh. 

The Black and Gold's poor defensive scheming and play-calling by the previous staff were a huge reason why the Steelers couldn't get over the hump and were barely a playoff team in 2025. The hope is that a defense with some added star power this offseason and a new coordinator, who will call his own plays, can help Pittsburgh's defense get back to its dominant ways. Tomlin's involvement in all aspects of the team may have been to the players' detriment, and a new staff can hopefully unlock the roster. 

Steelers’ New DC Can Unlock The Defense

With McCarthy's hiring, he brought along longtime defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Graham has been known to get a lot from defenses that don't have the best personnel. He last coached for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2025 and made a defense with not much star power into an average unit. He will have a much better roster to work with in the Steel City. His defense will be schemed based on his players, not a common scheme that he uses everywhere he coaches, which will be a huge positive for the Steelers. 

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