Steelers Now
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin receives a lot of flak from the fanbase for not winning a playoff game since 2016. It’s the longest playoff win drought for the franchise since pre-1972.
The standard in that regard has not been met by the Steelers, but Tomlin always has his team competitive. He’s not had a losing season in his first 18 years as the team’s head coach, which is an NFL record.
Former Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley thinks Tomlin is unfairly criticized, and Steelers fans should be grateful that he’s their head coach.
“This is one of the smartest guys I’ve ever been around,” Haley said recently on the Mangia Cast on Bleav’s YouTube channel. “Smartest intellectually, smartest football. He’s phenomenal… All these Pittsburghers [say], ‘We need a new coach.’ No. Just get a quarterback that can play, and continue to find good players. You’re in good hands. He is really awesome. I was amazed by him every day.”
Tomlin got bashed during the Steelers’ two-game losing streak in October, some even calling for his job. Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin was also receiving a lot of heat during the two-game losing streak when the Steelers allowed 68 points and 858 yards.
The defense was trending in the wrong direction, but they bounced back in a major way on in last Sunday’s win over the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts came into the game as the league’s No. 1 offense.
The defense forced five turnovers. Overall, the Steelers had six takeaways when including the muffed punt by Josh Downs.
The Steelers’ scored 24 points off the turnovers. It was the most scored off turnovers by the Steelers since Week 9 of 2007 against the Baltimore Ravens (28).
Getting back to the basics and smashing the run was pivotal for the Steelers’ defense on Sunday. It was nothing mystical, however, according to Tomlin.
“It’s a fine line between drinking wine and squashing grapes in this business. It’s nothing dramatic, you know,” Tomlin said on the defensive turnaround. “It’s really not. And that’s why we respect it so much. Couple plays here and there might have been different last week. We don’t give up a 59-yard ball and a 33-yard ball. We don’t let the convert on fourth and one in the flat, for example, in the third quarter. That’s football at this level. It’s a limited number of plays or sequences that can really change the trajectory of an outcome. We’re still the same group that stunk it up last week. That’s football.”
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Former Steelers OC Defends Mike Tomlin: ‘One of the Smartest Guys I’ve Ever Been Around’
