He hasn’t gained a playoff recreation in a decade, however he hasn’t had a shedding season in 18 years and counting as the pinnacle coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
He hasn’t gained a division title in half a decade, however he continues to have his group within the playoff image 12 months after 12 months.
For all of the warts that Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin has, which heart on the dearth of playoff success, he constantly has his group taking part in in significant, impactful video games years after 12 months. That has to matter in some unspecified time in the future.
So, the place does he rank among the many league’s greatest coaches regardless of the dearth of playoff success? Nicely, ESPN’s Mina Kimes and Kevin Clark debated that and got here out on totally different ends of the spectrum in the course of the newest episode of the “Mina Kimes Present that includes Lenny.”
For Kimes, the dearth of playoff success is an enormous deal, which has her dropping Tomlin to No. 8 in her rankings. However for Clark, the consistency through which Tomlin will get probably the most out of groups that don’t look all that good on paper is somewhat spectacular, which has Clark protecting the Steelers at No. 5 in his rankings.
Specifically, Kimes and Clark debated Tomlin towards a man like San Francisco’s Kyle Shanahan.
“So to start with, Mike Tomlin, as we all know, all the time will get outcomes. And possibly it’s not the highest degree, possibly it’s not the [Kyle] Shanahan degree of the Tremendous Bowl the previous couple of years, I perceive that, however you’re all the time, you’re gonna win video games you shouldn’t,” Clark mentioned of why he nonetheless has Tomlin in his prime 5. “I feel he has that ability. He’s a significantly better at that than Kyle Shanahan is.”
That could be a very reasonable take from Clark. With Tomlin, he is aware of tips on how to muddy issues up for his group, and drag opponents into the mud, particularly when he’s at an obstacle. At the least, that’s the case within the common season. The postseason is one other matter altogether.
However within the common season, the Steelers know tips on how to win ugly video games. It’s what they do most of the time. That’s a Tomlin signature, unquestionably.
Tomlin stays extremely revered within the business, and has achieved extra with much less, in comparison with different coaches who’ve had shedding seasons with comparable rosters.
For Kimes, although, it comes again to the playoff struggles, and what occurs within the playoffs when his defenses crumble, which is a direct reflection on Tomlin. Although Kimes is down on Tomlin, she nonetheless has him in her prime 10.
“Mike Tomlin, everyone knows, has not had playoff success over the previous couple of years. To me, his demotion is a mirrored image of that. However, I’d add this. I feel like we typically have a look at the Steelers and we predict, nicely, it’s simply the play on the quarterback place. They only haven’t gotten it proper on the quarterback place,” Kimes mentioned of Tomlin and why he fell in her rankings. “And that’s not Tomlin’s fault. Yeah, possibly he hung onto Matt Canada for too lengthy and whatnot, nevertheless it’s not his fault that they haven’t discovered a quarterback.
“However actually, like once you have a look at a few of, just like the final 12 months’s playoff loss, it wasn’t simply the quarterback place that induced them to flame out on the finish, the protection laid a significant egg as nicely, which is one thing we put extra of his ft. So, I simply really feel like at a sure level you gotta punish the man for not getting it achieved within the playoffs lately.”
That Kimes take is one many Steelers followers will undoubtedly agree with. Tomlin and the Steelers haven’t gotten it achieved within the playoffs since 2016, and with all of the adjustments in roster building and personnel, there’s one widespread denominator there with the Steelers and their lack of playoff success, and that’s Tomlin.
Whereas the quarterback place has remained an issue for the Steelers, and Tomlin has had main a hand within the roster building, it’s not totally his fault. However what could be laid at his ft is the defensive collapses within the playoffs from high-priced models.
Tomlin stays an awesome coach, however the skill to face on his resume and argue in favor of him is changing into harder and harder to do the longer the playoff victory drought drags on.
