PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA – OCTOBER 08: Head coach Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers looks on prior to a game against the Baltimore Ravens at Acrisure Stadium on October 08, 2023 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
A new era in Pittsburgh arrived Monday when Mike Tomlin stepped down as coach of the Steelers. On average the Steelers change coaches every couple of decades. Tomlin coached the Steelers for 19 years. His predecessor Bill Cowher coached there for 15 years. But Chuck Noll outlasted them all by coaching in the steel-city for 23 years. All three men won Super Bowls there.
Compare that to organizations like the Cardinals or Jets who fire and hire coaches every 1-3 years. The Steelers are the model for organizational consistency. But it wasn't always that way. From 1933-1968 the team named a new coach 16 times. Among those 16 times Walt Kiesling was their coach three different times. Joe Bach completed two stints as coach, once in the 1930s and again in the 1950's! The Steelers have the most unusual coaching history in the NFL.
NEW ERA IN PITTSBURGH
So who is next? The right candidate has to be tough with a no-nonsense approach. He has to emphasize tough defense above all else. My money is on Brian Flores. He came up through the Patriots organization. And he has head coaching experience with the Dolphins. His 3 year run ended in Miami because he was tough on Tua Tagovailoa and the organization chose its unhappy quarterback over a tough but promising head coach.
Flores took over the Dolphins in 2019 and went 5-11. But he improved that team the next year and they went 10-6. He followed that with a winning 9-8 record but it required an impressive 8-1 finish to get there. However he was jettisoned for never making the playoffs in his three year run.
Mike Tomlin hired Flores in 2022 as a Steelers assistant and the Vikings lured him away to be the defensive coordinator in 2023.
A new era in Pittsburgh is upon us. Will the Steelers next coaching hire still be there in in 2040? History says yes. For more NFL talk and analysis tune in each weekday to Craig Shemon and Company fro 2-6 pm on ESPN Southwest Florida.
