Mike Tomlin has won one Super Bowl as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, beating the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII. While he’s been criticized for not having a lot of recent playoff success, Tomlin is as hungry as anyone to win his second Super Bowl as a head coach. In a feature by Jim Trotter of The Athletic, Tomlin talked about his drive to win a Super Bowl.
“It’s because it’s not mystical,” he said. “I don’t wonder what it’s like to win it; I know what it’s like. That means there is more clarity in the drive,” Tomlin told Trotter. “I’ve just been in some great places, around some impactful people, and I’m thankful of that. I want (another title) for the people I’m with, the people that don’t know what it’s about. It’s the pursuit of rare air, and it forever changes you when you win it.”
In addition to his Super Bowl win with Pittsburgh in 2008, Tomlin won one as an assistant with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002. So he knows what it takes to have a team capable of doing so and the work that goes into winning on football’s biggest stage.
The Steelers right now are an ascending team with one of the best defenses in the league and an emerging young offense led by QB Kenny Pickett. Tomlin isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, so he’ll be around to lead the Steelers when they’re truly Super Bowl contenders. That’s not to say they couldn’t be this year, but it’s more likely to be a year or two or three down the road as the team develops and hits its peak.
But Tomlin certainly hasn’t gotten complacent. He wants another Super Bowl just as bad as the guys on the team want one and probably a lot more than the fans want one. Just because the recent playoff success hasn’t been there doesn’t mean Tomlin is content just being the guy who finishes above .500.
Tomlin has a good mindset, and his leadership skills are among the best in football. At some point — and it wouldn’t surprise me if it was this year — the Steelers are going to get that playoff win that has been eluding them since 2016.
With a veteran coach and talented defense, the Steelers one of those teams where anything can happen once they’re in the postseason. If Pickett can make the throws he needs to in big spots and continues to be clutch and the defense stays healthy, this could be a really good season in Pittsburgh.
