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Following a tough offseason that has far too frequently seen his abilities as a head coach questioned, it would be fair to say that the public perception of Mike Tomlin is perhaps lower than in has been in previous years. And heading into the final year of his contract, there is a growing number of Pittsburgh Steelers fans who like to see the team consider a different option in the future.
Once a consensus top five coach in the eyes of most media experts, even as recently as last year, it would appear that Tomlin’s reputation has been tarnished so much this year that he has taken a dive in the offseason rankings. As per the latest offering from Jared Dubin of CBS Sports, the Steelers coach is now barely managing to scrape into the top 10.
10. Mike Tomlin, Steelers
“Tomlin’s career regular season record of 125–66–1 is one of the best in NFL history. That .654 winning percentage is 16th-best all--time among qualified coaches, and among active coaches, only Bill Belichick’s percentage is better. The Steelers have been a regular playoff presence during Tomlin’s career, advancing to the postseason in eight of his 12 seasons and finishing with at least a .500 record every single year. Pittsburgh has been to two Super Bowls during his tenure, winning one, though they have not been the AFC’s Super Bowl representative since 2010.”
With the second-best winning percentage among active coaches, some might suggest that ranking Tomlin 10th on the list is absurdly low, while others will point to his lack of playoff success over recent seasons.
However, even the most ardent Tomlin haters must surely consider placing him behind names like Sean McDermott of the Buffalo Bills (9) and John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens (8) is rather ridiculous. Even if considering only the recent history of the past five seasons, Tomlin has far exceed the achievements of Harbaugh.
Baltimore have record only two double digit win seasons in each of the last five years compared to four for the Steelers, Tomlin has three divisions titles to Harbaugh’s one in that time frame and has won two more playoff games. Neither coach has been outstanding, but to suggest Tomlin has been worse is laughable.
It will come as no surprise to learn that Bill Belichick earns the top spot, while Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs comes in at No.2 and Sean Payton of the New Orleans Saints comes in at No.3. While I have no issue with one and three, ranking Reid that high given his postseason record is a hard one to swallow.