Report: Pittsburgh Steelers plan to retain Mike Tomlin as head coach

The Pittsburgh Steelers don’t plan to move on from Mike Tomlin, despite another early exit from the NFL Playoffs, according to a report on Sunday from Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Steelers were dominated to the tune of a 28-14 loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday night. And they had no answer for Ravens running back Derrick Henry, who once again proved why he’s one of the greatest players in the game’s history.

It was yet another painful early exit for the Steelers franchise and their fans. Which fueled many questions swirling about his job security. For now, his job status in the Steel City appears to be safe.

There was plenty of chatter around Mike Tomlin

“There’s going to be chatter and conversation about Mike Tomlin’s future. The people in the city of Pittsburgh, a great majority of people want change there,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter said during SportsCenter on Sunday morning. “It’s not the way the Steelers operate. And I think people across the National Football League know how great a coach Mike Tomlin is, but that doesn’t change the tone in the city.”

One avenue of chance that Schefter suggested would be in a potential trade to another NFL team. However, he revealed that Tomlin has a no-trade clause in his contract with the Steelers. If he ever were to be dealt, he would have to be on board with the move and it would have to be with Tomlin’s permission.

“Look, this is a team that’s gonna have to go through any number of key decisions this offseason,” Schefter continued. “Quarterback is one of them. But I also remember when this team faced questions, when Bill Cowher, later in his career, [the fans] wanted him gone, and the Rudy family never wavered. They kept him on, and he wound up winning the Super Bowl.”

He won a Super Bowl in Pittsburgh, which happened in 2009. His team made another appearance in the big game in 2011 against the Green Bay Packers, but the Steelers have not returned to the Super Bowl in over a decade.

Tomlin’s 8–11 record in the playoffs with the Steelers is another gripe fans have had in recent seasons. They’ve made the playoffs in four of the last five years and have exited during the wild card round each time. 2017 was the last time Tomlin coaches his team to a divisional round matchup, and they haven’t won the division since 2020.

On3’s Barkley Truax also contributed to this article.