Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin reacts before the NFL game between the Cincinnati Bengals and Pittsburgh Steelers at Paycor Stadium in Cincinnati on Oct. 16, 2025. Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

ESPN Analyst Believes Steelers, Mike Tomlin Could Split

Originally posted on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI
By Noah Strackbein | Last updated Oct 19, 2025 8:00 AM ET

The Pittsburgh Steelers are the center of attention in the AFC North after their brutal loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in primetime. Now sitting at 4-2 and only two games above Cincy for the lead in the division, things look drastically different from a week ago, and one NFL analyst believes it could mark the beginning of the end for their head coach.

Mike Tomlin signed an extension with the Steelers over the offseason, keeping him in Pittsburgh for what is believed to be another three seasons, including this one. But ESPN analyst Evan Cohen believes that the loss to the Bengals could spell trouble for Pittsburgh.

If it does, it's the end for Tomlin.

Tomlin Done in Pittsburgh?

Speaking on ESPN's Unsportsmanlike, Cohen shared his thoughts that if the Steelers end up with a losing season because the Bengals game derailed them, it's over between the team and their head coach.

"This was a golden opportunity," Cohen said. "A losing season? On the table. Mike Tomlin and the Steelers breaking up after this season? On the table. Rodgers not playing after this season? On the table. This was a, literally, shoot yourself in the foot kind of game. It’s ridiculous that they lost this game."

The Steelers have never had a losing season under Tomlin. Even when their starting quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger went down with an elbow injury, they finished 8-8 and nearly landed a playoff spot behind Mason Rudolph and Devlin Hodges.

At 4-2, though, one loss could change the course of the season in at least one analyst's eyes.

Joseph Maiorana-Imagn Images

Would Steelers and Tomlin Divorce?

The Steelers and Tomlin have this relationship that many try to rip apart by saying one statement moment can mark the end. But that's never been the case.

Imagining Tomlin leaving the Steelers is nearly as difficult as imagining the Steelers letting him go. Unless his contract expires in three years and the two sides believe that it's over between them, it's almost guaranteed that he sticks around.

The settiment that Tomlin will coach the Steelers until he no longer wants to is true, and the head coach has made it very clear throughout the years that he has no interest in going somewhere else anytime soon.

There's also a small chance that at 4-2, a game that historically favors the Steelers losing is the reason the entire season falls apart. Can it happen? Certainly. But Tomlin's losing season streak doesn't seem like the most realistic outcome just because of a loss to an AFC North opponent.

This article first appeared on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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