Steelers head coach was in a no win situation when it came to the decision on whether or not to play the starters against the Cleveland Browns. Steeler Nation is the worse when it comes to armchair coaching. If the offense had been clicking on all cylinders in the past few weeks leading up to the Browns game, it would indeed made more sense to rest everyone. In light of how the offense and more particular the running game has been performing, they needed to get some work and confidence. Had Tomlin rested them and the offense were to come out flat in the first playoff game, Steeler Nation would of been screaming that Tomlin should of played them against Cleveland. The injuries suffered by quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and safety Ryan Clark against Cleveland will also lead to second guessing Tomlin if both do not perform well in the first playoff game. Tomlin truly will be second guessed either way.
I for one am glad to see him play the starters, they needed the work and the confidence after losing to the Tennessee Titans. Anything less than a Super Bowl win, will have Steeler Nation pointing fingers back to the Cleveland game. As Tomlin would say, it is what it is. As a fan you should respect his decisions as he truly is a great coach up to this point and coached an injury riddled team and an inconsistent offense to the number 2 seed in the AFC against one of the toughest schedules in the league as well.
