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Mike Tomlin revealed why he decided to resign as the Steelers head coach this offseason

The Pittsburgh Steelers were one of the busiest teams during the 2026 NFL Draft. After entering the action with a league-high 12 picks, the Steelers ended up making only 10 selections, but that still gave them one of the biggest draft classes in the entire league. With a new head coach, Mike McCarthy, replacing the outgoing Mike Tomlin, Pittsburgh is also going to have a lot of new players on its roster next season.

Tomlin’s decision to resign as the Steelers’ head coach earlier this offseason surprised a lot of folks, as it brought a fairly abrupt end to his 19-year stint in charge of the team. It didn’t take long for Tomlin to land on his feet, as he will work as an analyst for NBC’s “Football Night in America” program, which airs on Sunday nights, but he still has Pittsburgh on his mind, as he recently explained why he ultimately decided it was time to move on from the team.

Mike Tomlin Opens Up on Decision to Part Ways with the Steelers

Tomlin took over as the Steelers’ head coach in 2007, and during his time in charge of the team, it never posted a losing record, which is a very impressive feat. The problem is that, during that time, Tomlin only had one Super Bowl victory to show for, and that came all the way back in 2008. As the years went on, Tomlin’s lack of postseason success became more and more glaring.

In the wake of Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, Tomlin managed to string things together and keep the Steelers competitive, but it became increasingly clear that the team needed a new voice to guide it forward. While Pittsburgh wanted to keep Tomlin around, he ultimately decided to resign shortly after its wild-card round defeat at the hands of the Houston Texans.

McCarthy was quickly brought in to replace Tomlin, and there’s reason to believe he can help this team take a step forward. Still, it’s fair to wonder how different things would look if Tomlin decided to stay in town. Ultimately, the longtime Steelers leader revealed that he felt it was the best move for all parties involved if he departed this offseason.

“It’s probably not an overnight decision,” Tomlin said in an interview with Maria Taylor of NBC. “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.”

Mike Tomlin Expected to Return to Coaching in the Future

GettyMike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers

Tomlin’s time with the Steelers may be up, but there’s almost no doubt he will be back coaching again at some point in the future. It’s become almost common for veteran coaches to take a year off from coaching by dipping their toe into the world of sports media before quickly taking on a new opportunity with a different team.

The expectation is that Tomlin will follow a similar route that guys like Sean Payton and Bill Belichick have taken in recent years and find his way back into the action at some point in the near future. For now, Tomlin is preparing for his new role with NBC, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he’s coaching a new team in 2027.