In starting Russell Wilson over Justin Fields last Sunday, many believe Mike Tomlin made one of the biggest decisions of his entire career as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ head coach. The Steelers named Wilson the starter and never did so for Fields, but circumstantial indications suggested otherwise. His grace in navigating the complicated dynamics only reinforces his leadership abilities in the eyes of Doug Whaley.
“The way Mike Tomlin handled this situation shows he is a leader of men”, the former NFL GM said on 93.7 The Fan about the Steelers’ dilemma with Wilson and Fields. “There shall never be another question about Mike Tomlin, why he has this job, because he can lead men”.
Now in his 18th season as the Steelers’ head coach, Tomlin has always had a reputation as a leader. Some may disagree with it, but that is what his players, and players on other teams, routinely say. We also hear similar things from both Justin Fields and Russell Wilson and other players who may have been on the “losing” end of some of his decisions.
“The way he handled it and the way he got out in front of it no matter what the outcome was gonna be, he was pointing the finger at himself. ‘This was my decision and my decision solely’”, Whaley said of Tomlin making clear that he was the one making the call to start Wilson this past week rather than Fields. “That’s why you hear players, veterans, the rookies say, ‘I want to play for that guy’, because he knows how to lead men”.
Whaley concluded that Mike Tomlin has earned “the benefit of the doubt” when it comes to personnel and leadership decisions. He acknowledged that there are other facets of coaching for which he merits criticism, but not this. “This”, however, is of course up for debate as well. Not every player who has ever played for him has loved his time in Pittsburgh.
And I should probably note that we haven’t exactly seen the full fruits of this momentous decision. Mike Tomlin got a good first game out of Russell Wilson and so far has not played Justin Fields again. But what will he do if Wilson is really struggling and the season is on the line? Has he backed himself into a corner or would he be willing to swing the pendulum back? I would say “at the risk of his neck”, but I think we all know his neck is not at risk.
Indeed, Tomlin’s peerless job security has a lot to do with his ability to lead. He is able to make decisions like starting Russell Wilson over Justin Fields because he knows he has the latitude. Virtually no other coach in the league would have such freedom along with protection against failure of result.
Nevertheless, that doesn’t take away from Tomlin’s natural leadership abilities, which are abundant. It can’t be a coincidence that virtually everybody who plays for him comes to that conclusion. And he also listens to the pulse of his players, including on this decision about Wilson and Fields.
