Mike Tomlin stepped away from coaching the Steelers after 19 seasons in Pittsburgh following the 2025 season. It was expected that Tomlin would not take another NFL coaching job for the upcoming season, but his 2026 plans remained unknown until this week when it was reported that he would take on a broadcasting role for NBC’s Football Night in America.
NFL fans are excited to see Tomlin in this setting, especially as he’s known for his witty comments called Tomlinisms. It’ll be awesome to hear from such a legendary coach on the broadcast. But, will this be a long-term position for the ex-Steelers coach? Former Pittsburgh coach Bill Cowher doesn’t think so.
Ahead of Thursday’s draft in Pittsburgh, Cowher, who left the Steelers after the 2006 season and quickly became an NFL analyst on CBS, sat down with the Dan Patrick Show to talk about Tomlin’s latest career move. Cowher doesn’t believe Tomlin will remain in a broadcasting role forever—he’s too competitive to stay away from the sidelines that long.
“I think a lot of [coaches] that have left have come back. I did not go back,” Cowher said. Does he think Tomlin would remain in broadcasting long-term? “I don’t think so. I think he loves the sideline, I think he loves the competition, I think he loves that arena. He’s an arena guy.”
Competitor would be one of the first words used to describe Tomlin, that’s for sure. He left the Steelers organization having never posted a losing record with the team, which is an NFL record. It’s weird to think about the 54-year-old never being back on an NFL sideline, especially because he likely has plenty of firepower left.
However, one thing Cowher mentioned being a reason why he never returned to coaching after leaving the Steelers in 2007 is that he couldn’t imagine not wearing the black and gold. This could easily be a reason why Tomlin would consider not returning to coaching, too, because he left such an impressive legacy in Pittsburgh—it’s nearly impossible picturing him anywhere else.
“Quite frankly, I left on my own, and I could never envision myself being in another uniform except black and gold,” Cowher said.
Tomlin’s never addressed his long-term goals in football, whether that be returning to a sideline one day or remaining in the broadcasting world. He hasn’t said much at all since stepping away from the Steelers in January, so there’s a good chance fans won’t know much about his future plans until they’re happening. Tomlin will definitely be a name to watch next offseason during the coaching cycle just to see if his name is thrown in the ring at all, or if he’ll opt to remain in broadcasting for a while (or forever).
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MADISON WILLIAMS
Madison Williams is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, where she specializes in tennis but covers a wide range of sports from a national perspective. Before joining SI in 2022, Williams worked at The Sporting News. Having graduated from Augustana College, she completed a master’s in sports media at Northwestern University.
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