Fans watching the Hall of Fame game between the Arizona Cardinals and Carolina Panthers will see a very familiar NFL name in a very different role.
Mike Tomlin, the former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach, is set to work the broadcast for NBC live from Canton, Ohio. It’s a new chapter for Tomlin, who retired from coaching in January after 19 seasons in Pittsburgh. His Steelers tenure included two Super Bowl appearances and one Super Bowl title.
Tomlin enters the booth with plenty of history behind him. He was the NFL’s longest-tenured coach when he stepped away, and NBC is banking on that experience as he begins his media career.
The move marks Tomlin’s NBC debut and the start of his next act after leaving Pittsburgh rather than taking another head coaching job. NBC, which carries Sunday Night Football, is giving him a prominent spot in its studio coverage.
“I've been a part of a team since 1980, and I can't wait to join this one and help continue delivering high quality coverage along with my new teammates on Football Night in America.”
Tomlin said in a statement in April, “I'm humbled and honored to come alongside the best group in sports, and really looking forward to the challenge of presenting the NFL to fellow football lovers on Sunday nights,”
This is also the first time Tomlin will work as a broadcaster after spending his entire adult football life on the sideline. From 1995 through 2025, he coached every year, at both the college and pro levels, with much of that stretch coming in Pittsburgh.
There’s even a bit of Steelers history baked into the move. Tomlin replaced Bill Cowher in 2007 after Cowher retired from coaching and went to CBS, where he has remained ever since. If Tomlin ends up following the same path, his post-coaching future could stay at NBC.
In Other News...
Mario Lemieux Delivered One Of The Wildest Nights In Penguins History
There are nights in franchise history that still sound exaggerated when told back, and Mario Lemieux authored one of them in Game 5 of the 1989 Patrick Division Final against the Flyers. He piled up five goals and three assists for eight points, a performance that tied several NHL playoff records and briefly made the game feel like it belonged to one player alone.
Lemieux had four goals in the first period and opened with the fastest three goals to start a playoff game, the kind of burst that can change the temperature of an entire series. Even with that outburst, Pittsburgh could not finish the job, and Philadelphia ultimately won the series in seven games, leaving Lemieuxs masterpiece as both a reminder of his brilliance and a what-if that still lingers in Penguins lore. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Still Have A Chance At A Buy Low Scoring Swing
The Penguins still have room to chase a scoring upgrade, and the kind of swing they could make is the sort that has become easier to imagine as the roster settles into summer. A winger with a proven finishing touch and some injury baggage would fit the buy-low mold Pittsburgh has already shown a willingness to explore, especially after taking a chance on Anthony Mantha following a major setback.
The question is less about whether there is upside in that type of move and more about where the fit actually comes from. Pittsburghs current forward mix does not leave an obvious opening, so any serious push would likely have to wait on the rest of the summer shuffle and the possibility of another move changing the top-six picture before the Penguins can turn that scoring idea into something real. [Read more 🡒]
Penguins Secondary Scoring Suddenly Looks Like A Real 2026-27 Debate
A lot of the Penguins forward conversation has centered on the stars, but the more interesting question for 2026-27 may be what happens underneath them. Egor Chinakhov, Rickard Rakell and Tommy Novak all fit into that secondary layer in different ways, and each brings a different kind of value to a roster that will need reliable scoring beyond its top names. Chinakhovs strong second half after arriving from Columbus gave the Penguins a glimpse of a winger who might still be trending up, while Rakells long record of finishing chances and moving around the lineup keeps him in the middle of nearly every offensive discussion.
Novak adds another wrinkle as a middle-six forward whose role could swing depending on how the rest of the group settles in. The projections around these players are less about certainty than about range, with goal totals and ice time both open to some combination of growth and regression. For a Penguins team trying to map out its next phase, the real debate is not whether secondary scoring matters, but which of these players can turn a useful run into something more dependable when the season actually arrives. [Read more 🡒]