Pittsburgh Steelers HC Mike Tomlin has always been able to make players like Najee Harris want to play for him. It’s not often that you come across a former player who ever has anything bad to say about him. And most of the few who do probably end up regretting it at some point down the road. While the term “player’s coach” is a double-edged sword, his players wield it freely as an honorific.
That’s what Najee Harris did in singing Mike Tomlin’s praises on Thursday. He has played his entire career with the Steelers, yet at the same time, he knows it’s different elsewhere. You know other players, you talk to other players, and you hear their stories. And you hear the stories of new teammates who have come from other organizations.
“I don’t know how it is with other teams, but looking at a little bit of Hard Knocks, he’s a player’s coach”, Harris said of Tomlin, via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “He’s gonna come in the locker room, chop it up with us, go in the training room, chill with us, talk about stuff besides football. Talk about life stuff. That makes you feel a little bit more comfort in this business we’re in that’s so cutthroat”.
Mike Tomlin bucked some trends when the Steelers drafted Najee Harris in the first round. The jury remains out for many on whether or not he was a wise selection. But it’s undeniable that he has been a focal point of the offense, and at times a mouthpiece for the coaches, in his own special way.
“[Tomlin]’s showing that you can have fun in this sport while being serious, too”, Harris said. “I think that’s why people want to play for him more. He added that with every player coming and going, he has heard “not one person [say] anything bad about Mike”.
Harris also talked about how Tomlin’s transparency and frankness are important values for players. So many times we hear from players that he is perfectly willing to chop down or raise up anybody in the room. He will tell anybody exactly what they need without sugarcoating it.
“I’ve talked to other guys; it’s not like that in other places”, Harris said.
Najee Harris brought up Hard Knocks, and, well, I think that exposed a lot of truths to people. There was such a stark difference between Mike Tomlin’s energy and camaraderie and those of the other AFC North head coaches.
That’s not to say that Tomlin is the only head coach with a strong personal bond with his players. I’m sure you can say the same for guys like Dan Campbell and Mike Macdonald and Jim Harbaugh, for example. But it’s pretty clear that players like Harris are galvanized by how Tomlin leads them. And it’s also pretty clear that it’s not a very common trait in this profession.
But he still needs to win another Super Bowl.
