With the Pittsburgh Steelers opening their season against the Atlanta Falcons, all eyes will be on Arthur Smith returning to face the team that just fired him from his head coaching position. However, that might not be the biggest matchup in that game. New Falcons head coach Raheem Morris is an old friend of Mike Tomlin’s, going all the way back to when both were with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the early 2000s.
Appearing on a recent episode of the podcast The Pivot, Morris was asked if he smiled when he saw the game against Tomlin on the schedule.
“I didn’t, but I know he did,” Morris said. “I can speak for Mike on that note, but he was on this show when he proclaimed me as the best head coach that wasn’t a head coach, right? I know when he looked at it, he gets himself some little pride out of that because that’s my older brother. I got two older brothers because you know his brother Ed [Tomlin], but those are my brothers. That’s part of my family. That’s part of my makeup.”
Morris and Tomlin’s coaching relationship goes all the way back to 2002, and Morris has talked about what a great mentor Tomlin was. This game might be a chance for little brother to step out of big brother’s shadow, so expect Morris to bring everything he’s got. When looking at the Steelers’ schedule, most focus on the brutal stretch to end the season, but Morris and the Falcons might give them a heck of fight to start the year.
In that same episode, Morris spoke about how he’ll be excited to face Tomlin as an equal but that he won’t let his guard down.
“I know when he looked at that, he has such a sense of pride because he knows that he’s going to walk right in my locker room and we’re going to dap it up and we’re going to go out there,” Morris said. “But I’m not going to let him lull me to sleep either. He’s still Tom Brady, he’s still Batman. Batman will shake your hand, love you up.”
Comparing Tomlin to Brady and Batman is hilarious, but it shows just how high of an opinion Morris has of his longtime friend. He looks at Tomlin as the ultimate killer, able to withstand any pressure or noise to get the job done. Considering the additions the Falcons made this year, the Steelers are going to need that mentality from Tomlin. Knowing how much he loves football though; this might be the most fun Tomlin has with a game all season.
“As much pride as I have about it being with him, for me, I better worry about it after the fact when we’re all said and done because big bro is coming,” Morris said.
This won’t be the first time that Tomlin and Morris compete against each other as head coaches. In 2010, Morris was the head coach of the Buccaneers, and in Week 3 of that season, he played Tomlin’s Steelers. Pittsburgh won that game 38-13 in a game that included Brett Keisel’s 79-yard pick-six and Charlie Batch starting at quarterback. However, Morris was still relatively young at that point, only being 34-years old.
It’s safe to assume that Morris has not forgotten that loss to his big brother, and he surely won’t want a repeat of that result. Tomlin has talked about what a great coach he believes Morris to be, and in this game, we’ll see if Morris can finally slay the dragon. While the storyline of Smith returning to Atlanta is a fun one, the friendly rivalry between Morris and Tomlin may be even more compelling to watch.
Losing that game would not bode well for the Steelers’ future. If they want to have any chance at making the playoffs, they’re going to need a strong start. Dropping that Falcons game would put them even deeper in the hole and might even contribute to Tomlin’s first losing season. Although Tomlin got the better of him in their first matchup, Morris could get the last laugh if he helps end Tomlin’s impressive winning streak.
