Former Pittsburgh Steelers HC Bill Cowher has been incredibly successful finding his life’s work after coaching. Shortly after leading the Steelers to a Super Bowl title, he moved into broadcasting, joining the crew of CBS’s The NFL Today. The 67-year-old confirmed he will be back for at least one more season through 2025, his 19th on the job.
Not at all by coincidence, 2025 will also be the 19th year on the job for current Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin. Tomlin is in his 18th season, already three years beyond the point at which Cowher retired from coaching. He has his Steelers out to an 8-2 record and is very much in the mix for the AFC’s No. 1 seed.
When he isn’t jumping through tables in Buffalo, Cowher has been very complimentary of his successor. Earlier this year, he fully backed Tomlin’s decision to turn to Russell Wilson at quarterback when few others were.
Bill Cowher, of course, experienced a rollercoaster of quarterbacks during his tenure with the Steelers. It was only toward the very end when they finally made him draft Ben Roethlisberger that his championship fortunes changed. Roethlisberger became the youngest quarterback to ever win the Super Bowl in his second season, Cowher’s 14th.
After playing under Cowher for his first three seasons, Roethlisberger played another 15 under Tomlin, winning one more Super Bowl and appearing in another. Unfortunately, neither has made it back since then, and now both are commenting on today’s Steelers.
CBS shook up its the NFL Today crew heading into the 2024 season, jettisoning longtime personalities Boomer Esiason and Phil Simms. Many wondered if Bill Cowher would be part of the turnover, but he survived. Recently, he revealed that he signed a new two-year contract at the time, confirming his tenure through 2025.
While he allows himself to take part in the tomfoolery from time to time, Cowher typically really is very good at his job, which is to provide football analysis. That is why he has been doing this for going on a couple decades now.
The NFL Today replaced Esiason and Simms with J.J. Watt and Matt Ryan. While Ryan is still feeling things out to some degree, Watt has proven to have the chops. He shows his biases, like everybody does, especially when it comes to T.J. Watt, whom Cowher included in his all-time best Steelers defenders.
CBS clearly knows that Bill Cowher provides the show with a certain level of credibility. He is the only coach on the show, which offers a different perspective from the player-centric panel. I suspect that he will have a job on The NFL Today for as long as he wants one. At 67 years old, however, who’s to say how much longer? He can surely retire comfortably at the tip of a hat.
