Ex-Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin Detailed One Key Reason He Chose Pittsburgh In 2007

Following Bill Cowher's retirement at the end of the 2006 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers hired former Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin. Tomlin would serve as head coach for 19 seasons before resigning in 2026. Pittsburgh is now led by Mike McCarthy, who seems to be doing well, but he has some tough games ahead. Now that Tomlin isn't the head coach anymore, he's beginning to share more in-depth insight on his past. 

Tomlin has now taken a TV role, doing Sunday Night Football for NBC. It was always expected that the former head coach would take on an analyst role when he finished coaching, and now he's doing great. He hasn't spoken much about the end of his tenure with the Steelers, but that changed recently. 

Pittsburgh has always been one of the most steady organizations in the NFL. The culture Chuck Noll built, which started in the 70s, is still effective today. During his coaching search, Tomlin was an intriguing candidate, a young defensive assistant only a few years removed from a Super Bowl as a defensive backs coach. 

On the most recent episode of Not Just Football With Cam Heyward, Tomlin revealed a big reason he chose Pittsburgh was the fact that they weren't a broken organization. He mentioned teams like the Atlanta Falcons, Miami Dolphins, and Las Vegas Raiders (Oakland at the time) as broken organizations, which ultimately led him to Pittsburgh. 

"Most of the time, you get a job opportunity because the circumstances are broken, and the other situations that year -- Atlanta, Miami, Vegas -- places like that, they were broken," Tomlin stated. "Pittsburgh wasn't broken, and so that was exciting, but also scary. Just depending on your perspective, that's kind of how all that developed." 

When he was hired, Tomlin was the youngest head coach in the NFL, and it's easy to see why things could have been scary when he came in. Even though they weren't great in 2006, the Steelers were just two years removed from a Super Bowl and had an established culture and veteran leadership. 

As Tomlin mentioned, normally when head coaching jobs open, it's for a reason and not a good one. The Steelers were a rare case: they had an obvious Super Bowl hangover and still had a franchise quarterback and an elite defense. It would be hard for Tomlin to come in and elevate an already established team, but he did anyway, leading them to two Super Bowls.  

Even though things didn't end well in Pittsburgh for Tomlin, he still upheld the winning culture and never had a losing season. Whether that streak is a blessing or a curse is up to you. He will one day receive a gold jacket and be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his work with the Steelers. 

Steelers' McCarthy Is Filling Tomlin's Shoes Nicely

So far through eight games, the Steelers are 6-2 and tied for first place in the AFC North. While their record is typical of recent years, how they got here is what's important. Pittsburgh is dominating teams in the trenches on both sides of the ball, something they never did at the end of Tomlin's tenure. 

Pittsburgh struggled to stop the run the last few years, and in year one under McCarthy, they have one of the best run defenses in the NFL. It's more a credit to new defensive coordinator Patrick Graham, but McCarthy is the one who hired him. 

Another area that has improved significantly is the coaching challenges. McCarthy has made excellent challenges this season in moments Tomlin likely wouldn't have. There is still a lot of football to be played, but so far McCarthy is doing an excellent job. He'll get another chance to prove that in Week 10.

What do you think? Are you pleased with how McCarthy has done this season? Follow us for more news!

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