Despite a fifth-straight loss, six-straight playoff defeats, and a franchise looking for plenty of answers, Mike Tomlin seems set to return as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach for 2025. Appearing on NFL Countdown Sunday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter indicated the Steelers stand by Tomlin without a hint of wanting to fire or trade him.
“Pittsburgh hasn’t given any indication that it wants to move on from Mike Tomlin,” Schefter told the show. “And this has been the most patient franchise, not just in football, but maybe sports. When Bill Cowher was struggling at the end, and fans in Pittsburgh wanted him gone, the Rooney’s stuck with him, and he wound up winning another Super Bowl. There’s no indication they wanna move off Mike Tomlin now.”
It’s a similar assessment Schefter has offered recently as media-led speculation about a Tomlin trade swirled. Conversations only intensify after another failed Pittsburgh season, a franchise that hasn’t won a playoff game since 2016 and looks in a much lower class than the Baltimore Ravens. Even the Cincinnati Bengals may feel more hopeful about their circumstances with an MVP-caliber quarterback and potent offense that finished the season as one of football’s hottest teams.
Team President Art Rooney II doesn’t make media waves and only publicly speaks a few times each year. Last season, he tipped his hand at frustration over the Steelers’ lack of recent success, feelings that have to intensify given the team’s 10-3 standing one month ago before one of football’s worst collapses. Pittsburgh lost their final five games by a combined 137-71, a disparity that still doesn’t accurately represent how thoroughly the team was outplayed.
Coming off a contract extension, there’s zero chance Tomlin is dismissed. And trades, fun as they are to speculate, are incredibly rare for coaches actively employed by their team. Instead, changes will come from elsewhere: some to the coaching staff, though OC Arthur Smith seems safe, assuming he doesn’t leave for a head coaching gig. Many of the positional coaches are new, especially offensively, and figure to see another year, although o-line coach Pat Meyer could be in real danger. Defensively, DC Teryl Austin’s odds of being let go have been downplayed by beat writers, and Tomlin has significant input in the defense anyway. Roster changes could be the most sweeping moves with a large group of free agents, many of whom won’t be retained.
Tomlin will hold a year-end press conference in the coming days to lay out an early offseason vision. One that will include him leading the charge to try to fix what is clearly broken.
