The Pittsburgh Steelers have the luxury of having one of the best head coaches in the NFL in Mike Tomlin. Tomlin is currently the longest tenured head coach in the league, as he was hired prior to the 2007 season, and he has the much-coveted streak of 18 non-losing seasons. Despite all of Tomlin’s success, he last won the Super Bowl at the end of the 2008 season and his team has not won a playoff game since the 2016 season. The recent lack of playoff success has the fan base on edge, with a lot of the group wanting Tomlin out as head coach.

Taylor Ollason / Pittsburgh Steelers

Steelers’ Mike Tomlin ahead of a 2024 home game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Tomlin is well-respected by players and coaches throughout the NFL, but the fan base in Pittsburgh has grown tired of the lack of recent postseason success. It seems as if the standard for the Steelers has changed, and recently, it has just been about being good enough to make the postseason. Not only has Pittsburgh not won a playoff game since the 2016 season, but the group has lost their last three playoff games by an average of 15 points. Performances by the Steelers in playoffs have been utterly embarrassing in recent years.

NFL insider Mike Florio appeared on Pardon My Take on Friday, where he spoke about the current playoff scenarios and what could happen in the 2025 offseason. He spoke about the future of Tomlin with the Steelers, stating he doesn’t expect a change to be made, but that is usually when surprises happen.

“You just never know when everything’s going to align and it’s either the guy wants out, or the team wants to make a change, and there’s only so many years that I think a guy can make it,” Florio said.

Organizations don’t necessarily give coaches a long enough time to truly make a difference with a franchise in today’s NFL, which is why Tomlin being in his role for as long as he has is impressive. The same goes for John Harbaugh, who is the second-longest tenured coach in the league with the Baltimore Ravens.

Joe Sargent / Getty Images

Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin and Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh talk during warmups before the game at Heinz Field on September 30, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

It is completely fair to say that most coaches would be fired if they went seven full seasons without winning a playoff game. Tomlin has won a Super Bowl and consistently has his team in the playoff mix, so he likely gets cut some slack, but he should begin to feel the heat soon if Pittsburgh can’t win a game in the postseason. Florio spoke about how it may be time for the Steelers, or Tomlin, to begin looking for a fresh start.

“It’s amazing how long Harbaugh and Tomlin have been where they are in today’s NFL. Sometimes, you can just make the argument for both sides that it makes sense to have a fresh start. I’m not saying it’s going to happen, I’m just saying that’s how surprises happen because things go on behind the scenes unrelated to losses, unrelated to failed performance, that cause people to say we just need to do something else.”

Tomlin and Harbaugh each have their teams at the top of the AFC North, but neither has necessarily achieved their organization’s goals. The Ravens have the two-time MVP of the league at quarterback and have failed to even reach the Super Bowl, while Tomlin can’t get past the Wild Card Round as of late. Both organizations want more out of their teams, which is why it wouldn’t be shocking to see a new coach in either place.

Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers

Steelers’ Mike Tomlin during a game against the Cleveland Browns in Week 12 of the 2024 season.

Steelers’ Mike Tomlin Desperately Needs Results From His Team

Tomlin has been accused of wasting the primes of a lot of players that have come into Pittsburgh. This can be said about Antonio Brown and Le’Veon Bell, and current members of the team like TJ Watt or Cam Heyward. Heyward had some playoff success earlier in his career, but Watt has never won a playoff game despite consistently being one of the best defenders in the league.

The head coach signed a three-year extension during the 2024 offseason, which would keep him in Pittsburgh through the 2027 season. He is likely the only coach that can go winless in the playoffs for seven years and get rewarded for it, but the Steelers organization has always been loyal to its coaches. That isn’t going to change now.