It’s no surprise that Mike Tomlin has been one of the stars of the in-season version of Hard Knocks, with the third episode featuring the AFC North airing Tuesday night. Tomlin’s personality and leadership make him must-watch television, and Keith Crossrow, a vice president at NFL Films, said on the Up & Adams Show today that Tomlin’s done an “amazing job” of dealing with the cameras.
“I think Coach Tomlin probably wasn’t thrilled with the assignment at first, but since it landed on his desk, he’s been incredible. His attitude about it is reflected on the show I think,” Crossrow said. “The way he leads, the way he speaks, the tone he sets in that building, I think you’re seeing it on the show. It’s one of the reasons why the show is so special right now. But I think he’s just done an amazing job of handling this part of the business.”
While the show focuses on the entire division, the first two episodes were heavily skewed toward the Steelers. Viewers got to see how Mike Tomlin handles meetings and game plans for opponents, and he’s far and away the most interesting person on the show. Being able to peek behind the curtain and how Tomlin handles his team and interacts with his players as a leader has been really cool to see, and the scenes involving him and the Steelers are the most interesting in the whole show.
You can tell from watching the show how much Tomlin gets through to his players, and from an NFL Films/media perspective, it makes for good television. Tomlin isn’t thrilled about having the Hard Knocks cameras in there and said as much on The Pat McAfee Show last week, but it’s something that the entire AFC North has to deal with. He hasn’t let it get in the way of his prep and focusing on his team, and it’s made for a really compelling series and a unique look at the Steelers that we wouldn’t otherwise get.
Luckily for Tomlin and the Steelers, this is probably the last time they’ll be featured for a long time, but it’s been fun to watch, especially with the Steelers atop the AFC North. Next week’s episode could be a lot of fun if Pittsburgh is able to beat the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday and clinch its first division title since 2020.
