Steelers Insider on New Mike Tomlin Contract: ‘Don’t Expect Them to Start Now’

Like it or not, it won’t be long before the Pittsburgh Steelers extend Mike Tomlin‘s contract. The coach who some fans can’t stand, some fans love and others are on the fence about is heading into his 17th season with the Steelers — two seasons more than Bill Cowher but six fewer than Chuck Noll.

The question is when should we expect the deal to be done? Tomlin has two years left on his current contract — through the 2024 season — which is typically when owner and president Art Rooney II tacks on more years. Steelers insider Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette says don’t expect that to change. “They’ve never waited before, don’t expect them to start now,” he wrote in a May 30 chat.

“And, when it does, the extension will further infuriate that segment of the fan based that points to the Steelers not winning a playoff game in six years — the franchise’s longest drought since the 1970 merger — and hasn’t been to the Super Bowl in 12 years,” Dulac wrote in a January 31, 2023 column. He noted that since Pittsburgh’s last Super Bowl appearance in 2010, 14 different teams, or 44% of the league, have been to the big game.

Historically, the Steelers have added two additional years to each contract renewal, which would put Tomlin in his 20th year with Pittsburgh in 2026, three years shy of Noll’s tenure. The four-time Super Bowl-winning coach was nearly 60 when he retired, Tomlin would be 55. Not that age matters when it comes to coaching — Bill Belichick is 71, heading into his 24th season with the New England Patriots, and showing no signs of stopping.

In the last five-plus decades, the only time Pittsburgh’s made a head coach change has been when one retires. The Rooneys have given their coaches extended leashes that can’t and won’t be shortened, no matter the track record. Noll went four consecutive seasons without making the playoffs (1985-1988) and Cowher three (1998-2000). Tomlin has taken his team to the playoffs 10 times with a losing postseason record of 8-9. The Steelers have missed the playoffs five times under Tomlin with no more than two consecutive seasons between appearances.

“I don’t really evaluate Mike on anything other than I’m glad he’s our coach,” Art Rooney II told Missi Matthews for Steelers.com in February 2023. “Hopefully he’ll be our coach into the future. He gives us a chance to win, year in and year out, and put us in a position where we have a chance to compete for a championship.”

Coaching is everything to Tomlin, seemingly what he was born to do, and it’s not a stretch to see him continuing for many more contracts to come. Expect this one before the start of the 2023 season.

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Mike Tomlin’s Quest for a 2023 Playoff Win

The next hurdle in Mike Tomlin’s quest for a playoff win is the 2023 season, which kicks off at Pittsburgh’s Acrisure Stadium on September 10. The Steelers are just coming off their spring practices, which ended June 8. Three days of mandatory minicamp — June 13 to 15 — is the last offseason workout until training camp begins on July 27.

There are several key position battles that will be won and lost in Latrobe, but the significant difference between 2022 and 2023 is at quarterback. Last season, it was Mitch Trubisky‘s job to lose and he didn’t. This time around, Kenny Pickett is the guy. It’ll be his first camp at the helm and no one is breathing down his neck. The result should be a more polished Pickett ready to lead his team to postseason success.

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