Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin continues to not get respect from media in rankings

Whenever national media outlets put out any type of ranking, it should be taken with a grain of salt. After all, they are simply one person's thoughts on a particular subject. However, when you see an ongoing trend throughout the years, it makes one's eyebrow raise in suspicion.

Maybe suspicion isn't the best word, but when it comes to the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin, what does the man have to do to get some respect within the NFL media? Before going off on a Rodney Dangerfield rant, I was patrolling my usual NFL websites when I stumbled upon Rotoworld's latest NFL coaching rankings. I run a Steelers website, so I had to see where Coach T was ranked.

Before the page loaded I was expecting to see Tomlin in the Top 5 in the NFL. I mean, the man has never had a losing season, has been to two Super Bowls (winning one) and just made lemonade out of a 2015 season which provided nothing but lemons.

Come to my surprise, Tomlin wasn't in the Top 5. No, he barely even made the Top 10...coming in at No. 9. See what Patrick Daughtery had to say about Tomlin's spot on the list:

9. Mike Tomlin
Career Record: 92-52 (.639)
With The Steelers Since: 2007
Last Year's Ranking: 12

Mike Tomlin can be easy to take for granted. A complete unknown when he replaced Bill Cowher in 2007, Tomlin has one year of NFL coordinating experience. The Steelers' defensive scheme predates his arrival, and he's had a pair of rugged individualists at offensive coordinator, Bruce Arians and Todd Haley. Tomlin's job is to lead, an often,€” if not always, inscrutable task to those outside of the locker room. His most discernible on-field impact comes in the form of his frequently dubious clock management. That means, like John Harbaugh, another coach whose personal expertise is leading men, Tomlin has little to speak for him besides his overall record. Like Harbaugh, Tomlin's record speaks volumes. Only Bill Belichick, Mike McCarthy and Chuck Pagano have higher career winning percentages amongst active coaches. Tomlin has never had a losing campaign, and won at least 10 games in 6-of-9 seasons. If there are nits to be picked, Tomlin has produced only one playoff win over the past five seasons, and his teams can struggle for week-to-week consistency. Tomlin has benefitted immensely from having Ben Roethlisberger at quarterback, but a quarterback does not a culture make. Tomlin may not call the plays, but his hand sets one of the steadiest tones in football.

You read the above summation and think to yourself, "Well he has a point on many of these subjects." After all, Tomlin does have issues with clock management and consistency has been a problem, but when ranking coaches how does winning percentage and overall success not play a role in this debate?

Look at the coaches who made the Top 10:

1. Bill Belichick
Career Record: 223-113 (.664)
With The Patriots Since: 2000
Last Year's Ranking: 1

2. Pete Carroll
Career Record: 93-67 (.581)
With The Seahawks Since: 2010
Last Year's Ranking: 2

3. Bruce Arians
Career Record: 34-14 (.708)
With The Cardinals Since: 2013
Last Year's Ranking: 4

4. John Harbaugh
Career Record: 77-51 (.602)
With The Ravens Since: 2008
Last Year's Ranking: 3

5. Andy Reid
Career Record: 161-110-1 (.594)
With The Chiefs Since: 2013
Last Year's Ranking: 10

6. Mike McCarthy
Career Record: 104-55-1 (.653)
With The Packers Since: 2006
Last Year's Ranking: 7

7. Marvin Lewis
Career Record: 112-94-2 (.543)
With The Bengals Since: 2003
Last Year's Ranking: 11

8. Ron Rivera
Career Record: 47-32-1 (.594)
With The Panthers Since: 2011
Last Year's Ranking: 17

9. Mike Tomlin
Career Record: 92-52 (.639)
With The Steelers Since: 2007
Last Year's Ranking: 12

10. Bill O'Brien
Career Record: 18-14 (.563)
With The Texans Since: 2014
Last Year's Ranking: 8

Quite the list of coaches, no one would argue that, but Marvin Lewis ranked ahead of Mike Tomlin? The coach who has never won a playoff game in his time as a head coach is ahead of a Super Bowl winning coach who has never lost more games than he won? Tomlin is criticized for only having won one playoff game in 5 years, when Lewis has never even won a playoff game.

This is the time where you remind yourself these rankings are purely subjective, and in my opinion completely wrong. I have no problem with Belichick being at the top, but the year in and year out disrespect for Tomlin gets rather annoying. You don't realize the yearly debate on the subject? How about Tomlin was ranked 12th in this same ranking after a 2014 season which saw the Steelers win 11 games and the AFC North crown. And he is ranked 12th.

Tomlin doesn't care about these rankings, he is too busy getting his team ready for the 2016 season, but the fans certainly care, and some of us want to know what has to be done to get some respect around here?

"I get no respect I tell ya..."