Mike Tomlin is the longest-tenured head coach in the NFL, which is part of the reason his winning-season streak is so impressive. With him in charge, the Steelers have never had more losses than wins. His winning-season streak has become one of the most iconic fun facts regarding the league.
However, some argue that the stat is a little overrated. As the Steelers have been one of the most successful organizations in the league’s history, expectations have been raised for the team. However, there’s been a lack of playoff success recently, and although Tomlin’s been so great in the regular season, that hasn’t translated to the playoffs as much as the Steelers would have hoped.
One analyst who seems to hold that opinion is NFL Network’s Kyle Brandt. Brandt thinks that for an organization like the Steelers, their goals should be much higher than having a winning regular season every year. Brandt uttered his feelings on Good Morning Football on Wednesday.
“I have always felt this way,” Brandt said. “21 winning seasons. I would submit to you that they have 19 losing seasons of those 21 because there were 19 seasons they didn’t win the Super Bowl. That is what they are measured by. If you end up losing a playoff game, that is a losing season. They have two Super Bowl wins during that time, one under Cowher, one under Tomlin.”
The last Steelers losing season came in 2003 when they went 6-10. They added Ben Roethlisberger after the year and haven’t had a losing season since. They won two Super Bowls at the beginning of the streak, in 2005 and 2008. However, as Brandt alludes to, playoff success has been a bit harder for the franchise to come by since then.
The Steelers have appeared in one Super Bowl since losing to the Green Bay Packers. Since then, Pittsburgh has lost in the Wild Card round five times, the divisional round twice, and the AFC Championship game once. While Pittsburgh has maintained that winning season streak, it has struggled to truly contend for a Super Bowl.
However, things might be different this year. The Steelers’ defense has maintained the steady play of years past. The biggest difference for this team could come at quarterback, though. In Russell Wilson, the Steelers have a quarterback with a load of playoff experience, which they haven’t had at the position since Roethlisberger retired. The Steelers seem well-set for the playoffs this year, and they’ll hope they can end their recent playoff drought.
