Mike Tomlin’s next move may already be settled.
After 19 seasons running the Pittsburgh Steelers and stepping away following last year’s Wild Card loss to the Houston Texans, Tomlin has settled into his new role with NBC’s Football Night in America. And according to reporting from Gerry Dulac, the Steelers may already have the answer they needed about whether he plans to coach again.
Steelers defensive tackle Cam Heyward was the first to publicly suggest this week that Tomlin’s sideline days are over. Speaking Tuesday, Heyward said Tomlin had made his comfort level pretty clear.
“Guys, he’s not coming back. He’s way too comfortable.
He told me as soon as he walked in, ‘I win every week now.’ And I’m like, ‘I get that.’
I get that. And I’m not gonna fight against that because that’s a pretty sweet job he’s got going on over there,” Heyward said, via Gerry Dulac, on Tuesday.
Dulac then added more on Wednesday, and his update pointed in the same direction. According to Dulac, Tomlin has already told the Steelers he does not intend to coach anymore.
“My understanding is the Steelers are free of any compensation after this season if Tomlin returns to coaching. I will tell you, though, I have been told that he has told the Steelers he doesn’t intend to coach anymore. We’ll see,” Dulac said.
If that holds, it would line up with how Tomlin has described his NBC work. On New Heights with Travis and Jason Kelce, he called it “part-time work, full-time pay.”
There’s also his deal with NBC, which reportedly was structured with the later years backloaded in an effort to keep him around.
Meanwhile, the Steelers have moved on cleanly with Mike McCarty, and the early results have been strong. Pittsburgh is 6-2 heading into its bye week and sits alone atop the AFC North. Tomlin, for his part, has drawn strong reviews all season in the broadcast booth.
After 19 seasons without a losing record and a Super Bowl ring, Tomlin has earned the right to decide what comes next.
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