The Pittsburgh Steelers are sitting at 11-1 entering Week 14. That’ll due to the Coach of the Year Mike Tomlin.
When the 2020 season began, hype surrounded the Baltimore Ravens. Lamar Jackson was coming off his MVP season and the free agent acquisitions made them the favorite to win the AFC North.
Jackson and the Ravens have lost their wings in a 7-5 start. The Pittsburgh Steelers are leaving their brand of teams thanks to competitive defensive play and hard-hitting mentality on their way to the postseason.
That’s where coaching comes in. For Mike Tomlin, the veteran leadership has transformed the Steel City into a contender.
And it’s why voters shouldn’t think twice when awarding him Coach of the Year.
The Steelers set a new franchise record, beginning their year 11-0. With the offense struggling and key injures on both sides, it was expected their perfect picture season would pop. They did on Tuesday in a 23-17 defeat to the Washington Football Team.
Perfection in a record is one thing. Perfection in production is another. What stands out most with Tomlin is his ability to criticize his own team before others get the chance.
“To be bluntly honest, I’m really disappointed in our performance tonight,” Tomlin told reporters after a 19-14 victory against the Ravens. “We did enough to win tonight, that’s all.”
Tomlin’s tough love makes him better as a coach
The harsh reality is the Steelers are far from the AFC’s best team. One could argue that luck has gotten them as far as they’ve been.
It’s not luck, but coaching from Tomlin.
The Steelers have always been known for their “Steel Curtain” defense. It returned to that form this season. under his direction and development of young talent. Currently, Pittsburgh leads the NFL in sacks (44), interceptions (16) and turnovers (23).
The offense still is finding ways to win behind Ben Roethlisberger. That all comes down to play-calling. Tomlin and Randy Fichtner do enough right to hide the massive concerns in the total system.
And keep in mind three of their wins have come without any type of a run game.
Yet even when Tomlin sees the development of rising stars, he’s far from afraid of sending them back to reality.
“They can catch the ball, or they can get replaced by someone who will catch it,” said Tomlin, according to the Steelers team site. “It’s just as simple as that. Like I’ve often said, I expect guys to make routine plays, routinely.”
Plenty of names are in consideration for the coveted Coach of the Year. Joe Judge and Kevin Stefanski seemed to have fixed their woes in both New York and Cleveland, respectively. Brian Flores is near playoff-bound in the middle of a rebuild with Miami.
The Steelers shouldn’t be 11-1 and yet, here we are. The offense should be posting worse numbers due to regression from Roethlisberger and a lack of running. It isn’t.
Everything comes down to wins. With the roster at hand, Tomlin should be the only name on the ballot in 2020.
Mail the award to him if the Steelers get past the surging Buffalo Bills on Monday night.