Why Mike Tomlin leaving for Penn State would be worst thing for the Steelers

Alex Murray

•
Why Mike Tomlin leaving for Penn State would be worst thing for the Steelers image

Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Pittsburgh Steelers fans must feel like they’re stuck living the same season over and over. They are Bill Murray and this season is Groundhog Day.

Start off strong, peter off towards the end of the season, make the playoffs, lose in the first round. And round and round we go. 

But another piece of that recurring puzzle is the rumors about Mike Tomlin’s time ending in the Steel City. They always start popping up around Thanksgiving. This season was no exception. 

Ben Roethlisberger suggested Tomlin should become Penn State’s new head coach

Steelers fans are no doubt getting sick of the repetitiveness of the rumors, no matter whether they are in the “Tomlin in” or “Tomlin out” camp.

But one of the ones giving the rumors legs this time around is actually one of Tomlin’s former players, future Hall of Fame QB Ben Roethlisberger. Not only did he say Tomlin’s time should be up in Pittsburgh, but Big Ben said he believes Tomlin should go down to the college ranks and coach Penn State.

"Go be Penn State’s head coach. You know what he would do at Penn State? He’d probably go win national championships. Because he’s a great recruiter."

No doubt Tomlin will not take kindly to the idea that he should go coach in college. We saw how he reacted back in 2021 when his name was being floated for the vacant USC head coaching job that was eventually claimed by Lincoln Riley. 

Tomlin won’t want to go down to the college ranks—but the Steelers shouldn’t want him to either. 

Tomlin may be driving the bus that keeps the Steelers on this Groundhog Day loop, but he’s still a future Hall of Fame coach that brings about as high a floor as you can hope for year in and year out in the NFL.

Some are sick of the mediocrity, but would those people prefer abject failure instead? Would they rather have the fate of the Browns or Jets or Giants or Titans or Dolphins right now? Three of those teams have won a playoff game since Tomlin last did in 2016, but would Steelers fans readily switch places with the fans of those teams?

You may get lucky and land a Drake Maye if you tank for one year. But more than likely, you’re going to get someone mediocre like Jameis Winston or Trevor Lawrence or Tua Tagovailoa. Or you might really whiff and land someone like Josh Rosen or J.J. McCarthy.

The league is full of subpar and downright awful quarterback play and coaching right now. Tomlin may be stubborn and set in his ways, but even so, he’s much better than most. 

Just look at how consistent he’s been able to keep the Steelers through a QB run of Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, Mitch Trubisky, Russell Wilson, Justin Fields, and a 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers. Usually, when a team’s QB goes down, the team basically folds (see: Cincinnati Bengals). With Tomlin, the train keeps on chugging.

Steelers fans have been spoiled with success for a half-decade. Now, they are forgetting what brought them such sustained success: patience. Pittsburgh has been one of the winningest franchises in the NFL since 1970, and they’ve had three head coaches over that time. Three. That’s not a coincidence.

If Pittsburgh does blow it up as Big Ben and company suggested, there’s no telling when this respected franchise will return to relevance. That’s why Tomlin staying—at least for another year or two until a clear succession plan is worked out—would be the best thing for the Steelers right now.

Maybe just leave the QB selection/evaluation to someone else.

Senior Editor