Behind the Steel Curtain
The future of the Pittsburgh Steelers may hinge on the result of 60 minutes of football on Sunday night for the AFC North championship.
The Steelers battle the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday Night Football, 8:20 p.m. on NBC in a showdown at Acrisure Stadium with the winner going to the playoffs. The loser goes home.
In his 19th year as head coach, Mike Tomlin has only won a playoff game in four of them. There were chants to fire him by the fan base during the home loss to the Buffalo Bills.
It would be surprising to see the Steelers fire Tomlin, but could the coach decide to step away if the Steelers lose to Baltimore?
Senior NFL insider Dianna Russini of The Athletic reported on Saturday that the Steelers had “internal discussions” about Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman.
The extent of the Steelers’ interest was contingent on Tomlin walking away from the Steelers. That could mean going into broadcasting, taking a year off, or requesting to coach somewhere else.
“Notre Dame head coach Marcus Freeman seriously considered making the jump to the NFL, with multiple teams reaching out to gauge his interest,” Rusinni said.
Freeman announced on Twitter Monday that he is staying at Notre Dame.
“2026… run it back,” Freeman posted. “Go Irish ☘️”
Four teams were reportedly interested in Freeman, who has been Notre Dame’s head coach since 2022 and led the Fighting Irish to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game last season.
“The Giants, Titans, and Browns all had internal discussions about Freeman, as did the Pittsburgh Steelers) in the event longtime coach Mike Tomlin decided to step away,” Russini said.
Tomlin hasn’t said anything publicly to indicate he intends to leave in 2026.
It’s a fascinating discussion because if the Steelers weren’t 100% certain Tomlin would stay, would they be discussing the possibility of Freeman?
The Steelers have to decide by March 1 if they want to pick up Tomlin’s team option for 2027, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
If the Steelers decline it, things would get very interesting.
