The Pittsburgh Steelers have not won a playoff game since 2017. Head coach Mike Tomlin has been the overseer of the team in that time, and he has already entered some dangerous territory in regards to postseason success.
He has now lost six in a row in the postseason, which is a Steelers franchise record and the longest active streak in Tomlin’s tenure.
With that, Tomlin joins four other coaches in the pantheon of NFL history as coaches who have lost six or more straight playoff games in their career. Jim Mora, Marvin Lewis, Marty Schottenheimer, and Shane Owen are the only other coaches to reach that mark. Lewis holds the record with seven straight playoff losses.
However, Former Steelers safety Ryan Clark believes Tomlin is ‘unfirable’ because of the qualities he brings to the table each year. Clark said after the end of the season the Steelers could easily turn into the ‘Jacksonville Jaguars’ if they fired him.
Now, Clark explained why he believes he is unfirable, using an anecdote from Tomlin’s ability to connect with players on a different level. Clark says Cam Heyward nearly retired when he suffered a groin injury in the 2023 season, but Tomlin convinced him to return.
“Mike Tomlin is unfirable in my opinion, but that means nothing,” Clark said. “So I asked Cam Heyward why he and others still believe in Mike T so much. His answer was informative but also layered. It started with transparency and ended with his ability to motivate. Cam was ready to retire, but Tomlin wasn’t having it. He knew exactly how the meeting needed to go. He had a list of players at Can’s position, their ages and what they’d accomplished. If that wasn’t enough he had old film of Cam, and told him he’d never be that again. Well, Cam signed a new deal & had an All Pro year in 24.... you don’t fire a coach like him.”
While Tomlin brings great qualities to the table, the success has to turn around at some point. If Tomlin can not turn around his lack of postseason success, the answer is simple -- he will not be around Pittsburgh much longer. He will be back next season and likely 2026, too, but even with the Steelers, patience is wearing thin with so many losses, and the same script is being run back year after year despite changes around Tomlin.
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