The NFL season is officially back, and Thursday night marked the first game of the preseason. The Carolina Panthers faced off against the Arizona Cardinals in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game. It was also a significant night for former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin.
Tomlin is now on NBC’s “Football Night in America,” which airs before the “Sunday Night Football” game, and he debuted in his new role before the Hall of Fame game.
It always felt like Tomlin would go into television after he was done coaching, but many Steelers fans, or even NFL fans, didn’t think it would be this soon.
Even after Tomlin left the Steelers this offseason, there was a sense that he would land another head coaching job. However, he chose to go the television route instead. It’s possible that he could return to coaching after this season, as many NFL head coaches take a year off to work in TV before heading back to the sidelines.
Tomlin Did a Walk-and-Talk With Carolina Panthers QB Bryce Young
One of the most impressive things that Tomlin did in his NBC debut was a walk-and-talk interview with Panthers starting quarterback Bryce Young. Tomlin wanted to know how Young has developed as a leader heading into his fourth NFL season.
“Every year you have to make sure you’re learning your new team,” Young said. “I’m grateful to have a lot of guys that I have been around for a while now have that connection built in with. Year in and year out, you have to make sure you’re learning the new guys that are coming in.”
Tomlin’s Lack of Recent Postseason Success Played a Role in His Departure
Tomlin left the Steelers this January after losing to the Houston Texans in the wild-card round. The 54-year-old coach spent 19 seasons as the Steelers’ head coach, winning 193 games and losing 114. Tomlin guided the Steelers to a Super Bowl victory in his second season as head coach. Throughout his career, he never finished with a losing record. However, one concern at the end of his tenure was his inability to win a playoff game since the 2016 season. This lack of postseason success ultimately contributed to his decision to resign from the position.
“It’s probably not an overnight decision,” Tomlin said in an interview in April on ESPN, via NFL.com’s Kevin Patra. “But it’s probably not something that I could articulate or share with people. There’s a loneliness with leadership. I just thought it was a good time for me, personally. And by that, I mean just where I am in life. And I thought it was a good time for the organization, to be quite honest with you. We didn’t have a lot of success in the playoffs in recent years.”
The Steelers seem to be heading in the right direction with new head coach Mike McCarthy, but he will have huge shoes to fill, since Tomlin is one of the best head coaches in NFL history.
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Mike Tomlin Makes Career Debut in New Role After Leaving Steelers appeared first on HEAVY.