Mike Tomlin's job is in question after the Pittsburgh Steelers fell to the Houston Texans on Monday night to end their season.
It was the seventh consecutive playoff defeat for Tomlin, tying an NFL record that no one really wants. He's tied with former Bengals coach Marvin Lewis, for those curious.
Except really, there's so much more to this than Tomlin.
The Steelers could fire him. They could keep him. And that choice won't matter at all if they don't solve their real problem: quarterback.
What were the Steelers supposed to do this season with 42-year old Aaron Rodgers? They probably reached their ceiling. What about last season with a washed-up Russell Wilson? Or before that, with first-round bust Kenny Pickett?
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The fact that Tomlin has never had a losing season is quite remarkable when you look at the QBs he's had to trot out there in recent seasons.
ESPN's Dan Graziano made this very case in a new blurb he wrote Tuesday morning.
"You can love Mike Tomlin, fire Mike Tomlin, give Mike Tomlin a lifetime contract or whatever," Graziano writes. "It's not going to matter until he or whoever succeeds him gets a real quarterback."
There's some wondering whether Rodgers could come back for another season. Graziano doesn't want the Steelers to even consider letting him be their starter again.
"Pittsburgh shouldn't bring back Rodgers," Graziano writes. "They're not going any further with him at 43 than they did with him at 42. He's a bandage at best at this point in his career, and the Steelers can't keep going with bandages. They need a transplant."
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The 2026 NFL Draft was initially expected to have a deep group of QBs, and then a bunch of guys struggled in this latest college football season, so it doesn't look as promising.
Still, though, the Steelers need to try to find their quarterback of the future. It's the only way out of this rut.
"If they find their version of (Drake) Maye -- or even someone like (C.J.) Stroud -- in the 2026 draft, Tomlin's going to look like a much better coach to the disgruntled Steelers fans than he has in a while," Graziano writes. "If they don't, I'm sorry to tell you, this is the best you're going to get, no matter who coaches the team."
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