Tomlin. Coach of the year?

[shovelnose]

I know we haven't won anything yet. But it was an interesting article and the video at the end gives some coach to player insight.

http://www.pittsburghmagazine.com/Be...h-of-the-Year/

Admit it: Deep down in your soul, as the NFL season kicked-off with Big Ben watching from his recliner in his Sean John sweatpants and Dennis Dixon nervously crouching under center, you were hoping the Steelers would eek out a 9-7 Wild Card birth.

Now, with the Steelers looking down on the aging Baltimore Ravens atop the perch of the AFC North, it’s time Mike Tomlin gets his due.

The 38-year-old head coach has lead the Steelers through a battery of adversity: The Roethlisberger debacle, Holmes’ sticky-icky departure, Aaron Smith’s shredded triceps, and a cast of backup quarterbacks more haggard than the cast of “Celebrity Rehab” that somehow lead the team to a 3-1 start, not to mention a revised NFL rulebook that seems to target the Steelers (nothing has been tilted this disproportionately since Andy Reed sat on a teeter-totter in second grade.)


Yet as the world seemed to be crumbling Inception-style around Heinz Field, Tomlin remained his usual self—steady and confident, and most importantly, never making excuses. Despite all the muckraking that surrounded the Steelers’ locker room this fall, the team seems tighter than ever. Remember, when Harrison was fuming over his first fine from the Commissioner’s office and contemplating retirement, Tomlin excused Harrison from a crucial Wednesday practice so he could get his mind right.

Tomlin’s us-first attitude has trickled down through the ranks, and even the normally serene Troy Polamalu spoke out against Harrison’s treatment in front of the TV cameras. Polamalu risked his Proctor & Gamble endorsed, fam-friendly commercial appeal in order to stick up for a teammate that has been propagandized by the NFL Powers That Be into the gridiron version of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. That says a lot about the solidarity of Tomlin’s locker room.


Tomlin has had Harrison’s back since day one.

In the Age of Twitiocy, locker room solidarity is at a rare thing.

Two years ago, the argument that Tomlin was still running on the fumes of Bill Cowher’s legacy would’ve had some merit, but that ship has sailed. Chew on this: Since taking the reigns of the franchise, Tomlin is 40-20 with a Super Bowl ring and on his way his third division crown in four years.

But even more impressive, his defenses have ranked 1st, 1st and 5th in the NFL in his first three years. This season, they’re 4th. In his first 60 games at the helm, Tomlin’s Steelers have allowed a 100-yard rusher just once. That’s not just good, that’s Steel Curtain good.

And if you still have doubts that Tomlin is an elite head coach, ask yourself this question: Where would the 2010 Steelers be without rookie standout Maurkice Pouncey? Tomlin was not only wise enough to draft a center in the first round, but also brave enough to start Pouncey at his natural position from day one instead of moving him to guard. Tomlin took a risk on a 21-year-old kid, and now Pouncey looks like the next Dermontti Dawson—a perennial Pro Bowler who will anchor the line for the next decade.

And where would the Steelers be without wide receiver Mike Wallace? Tomlin selected the undervalued creole speed demon with a third round pick. Now Wallace is just 60 yards away from his first 1,000-yard season, which will make him the first wide receiver from a loaded 2009 draft to reach a grand. That’s faster than hyped first-rounders like Percy Harvin, Hakeem Nicks, Kenny Britt, Jeremy Maclin and Michael Crabtree.


Mike Wallace: 946 yards this season, more than any sophomore wide-out.

Tomlin stole the best receiver in the draft with the 84th pick, then fortified the corps this summer by bringing back a left-for-dead Antwaan Randle El. Say what you will about El, but his touchdown pass to Wallace in week 9 at Cincinnati proved to be the game-winning score, and that play alone justifies his return.

The decision to outsource the perpetually stoned Santonio Holmes to New York may not have been Tomlin’s idea, but he surely had the final call, and the move eliminated a locker room distraction and elevated Wallace’s game to the next level.


And let’s not forget Tomlin’s first draft, which featured the double-whammy of Lawrence Timmons and LaMarr Woodley. Woodley has racked up a preposterous 33.5 sacks in the past three seasons. Only two players have more: the Cowboys’ DeMarcus Ware and Woodley’s partner-in-crime James Harrison. Tomlin committed grand larceny by nabbing Woodley, a Michigan standout, in the second round.

Timmons, initially criticized for a slow start, has developed into a run-stuffing monster. His 108 tackles leads the team and puts him in the top 10 in the NFL, tied with Patrick Willis. On any other team, Timmons would be starring in Under Armor commercials. With James Farrior’s 36th birthday coming up and Timmons shining, Tomlin deserves credit for his foresight in selecting an elite middle linebacker to gradually take the reigns from Potsie, and apologies from the armchair quarterbacks who were quick to label Timmons a bust.


This summer, the sky seemed to be falling on the league’s most venerable franchise. Now, as the winter winds blow another season of playoff football into Pittsburgh, the Steelers may have “miles to go before they sleep,” as Tomlin once said in a press conference, quoting poet Robert Frost.

But one thing is clear: Tomlin deserves more than just props from the trigger-happy critics who doubted him after last season’s step backward. He deserves to be the NFL Coach of the Year.

The naysayers are right about one thing. Tomlin isn’t Cowher. He’s even better.

[Neil-Still-Rules-14]

Lol as much as Tomlin might deserve it, is it really even worth talking about? We all know Belichick has this one locked up.....

"He had the guts to trade Randy Moss, he's a genius.....blah blah blah blah blah"

[SH-Rock]

Yeah I don't think so, the NFL probably won't approve. I'd go for Morris. Youngest team in the league and he has made them pretty good. Or even Reid. Handled the whole Kolb-Vick debacle smoothly.

[tony hipchest]

worthy to note that raheem morris is a devout tomlin deciple. also worthy to mention that larry z and bob ligashitthebedsky were "his guys" and his hires. it had to be tough for him to admit the mistakes, but he did what was right for the team and fired them.

stone cold kugler and mt everest are already 10X better.

but most importantly he shitcanned jeff reed. that alone is worth 2 wins right off the bat. anyone remember the 1st ravens game?

we are 7-5 right now if tomlin did nothing and continue to let jeff 'janikowski' reed continue to shank kicks.

[GMU Steeler]

Originally Posted by tony hipchest

worthy to note that raheem morris is a devout tomlin deciple. also worthy to mention that larry z and bob ligashitthebedsky were "his guys" and his hires. it had to be tough for him to admit the mistakes, but he did what was right for the team and fired them.

stone cold kugler and mt everest are already 10X better.

but most importantly he shitcanned jeff reed. that alone is worth 2 wins right off the bat. anyone remember the 1st ravens game?

we are 7-5 right now if tomlin did nothing and continue to let jeff 'janikowski' reed continue to shank kicks.

All good points and glad you point out the decision to cut Reed. Have to admit being from the DC area and remembering seeing Suisham miss the chip shot against the Saitns last year I felt meh about bringing him in to kick but the guy's been reliable. Heck he even filled in admirably for Daniel Sepuluveda last week for a quarter and half or so. I do think Tomlin should definitely get consideration for coach of the year. But I see someone else getting it but he should get some votes.

[tony hipchest]

adam shein and rich gannon (on sirius radio) have already been mentioning him for COY so he has drawn notice (they both have votes for league mvp- not sure about coach).

oh, and i still get nervous everytime suisham kicks. i guess im still afflicted with reeditis.

[steeltheone]

This team in my mind is not 10-3 good. Tomlin deserves alot of credit.

[theplatypus]

[quote]In the Age of Twitiocy{/quote]

Maybe it's just early, but Twitiocy cracked me up.

[pghfrank62]

Coach of the Year is the most over rated award or accolade there is. Its like giving the Nobel Peace Prize to that worthless piece of crap in the White House. Chuch Knoll never got coach of the year so that in itself tells you all you need to know about Coach of The Year!!! Give it to someother coach, I will take another Lombardi!!!!

[WeegiesWarriors]

Originally Posted by pghfrank62

Coach of the Year is the most over rated award or accolade there is. Its like giving the Nobel Peace Prize to that worthless piece of crap in the White House. Chuch Knoll never got coach of the year so that in itself tells you all you need to know about Coach of The Year!!! Give it to someother coach, I will take another Lombardi!!!!

Sorry not picking on you personally, but fans should learn to spell the greatest coach in NFL history... Chuck NOLL. It's so frequently misspelled that i want to scream.


Not that this should disqualify Tomlin for coach of the year, but he has odd time management strategies, and he rarely gets called out on them. Last week at the end of the half he elects to spike the ball on first down with around 40 seconds left. He has elected to either spike the ball or call a timeout with plenty of time left in key situations like that. With 40 seconds left an NFL team should have the wherewithall to run a play in that situation. We can't score inside the 20 so what do we do? Lower our chances from 1 in 3 to 1 in 2. There's been a few times where he did that, then actually scored on the first play, but left more time on the clock than he could have. In the Cincy situation they should have went no-huddle, called a play at the line and ran it. You know... like most high school teams would have done.