Jan 12, 2026; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin before an AFC Wild Card Round game against the Houston Texans at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Barry Reeger-Imagn Images Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

Former Steelers Player Reveals Problem Mike Tomlin Caused

Originally posted on Pittsburgh Steelers on SI
By Noah Strackbein | Last updated Apr 3, 2026 7:00 AM ET

The Pittsburgh Steelers changed coaches this offseason for the first time in 19 years. Mike Tomlin stepped away from the team, leaving them looking for something new and eventually hiring Mike McCarthy to replace him.

The Steelers are excited about the future, and there are reasons to see why. Part of that excitement is snapping their playoff win drought and becoming a real contender for the first time in 10 years.

How the team got to this point, not winning a playoff game in nine years, has something to do with the team and the coaching staff. While Tomlin is highly considered a Hall of Fame head coach, not everyone saw the good in the way he went about things.

One former player, linebacker Steven Sylvester, pulled back the curtain to explain how Tomlin created problems during his time as the head coach. Speaking with the KSL Sports YouTube channel, Sylvester explained what Tomlin was trying to do and why it didn't work.

"When I was with the Steelers, we were 12-4 my first two seasons," Sylvester said. "Really good, top two, right next to Tom Brady's stupid self, in the AFC. Then, my third year, we took a dip. We let go of some veterans. It wasn't as good as the years before.

"What I saw, the difference was Mike Tomlin would try to do everybody else's job. He would try to do the defensive coordinator's job, the linebacker coach's job, and it wouldn't leave time for those guys to do their job. That created dysfunction."

Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Tomlin never had a losing season in 19 years as a head coach for the Steelers, so it's hard to deny his success and the impressiveness of his tenure. But fans and some former players were frustrated by the end, calling out the head coach and saying he was the reason they could not win a playoff game.

Tomlin was always known for controlling the defense during his time in Pittsburgh. No matter who the defensive coordinator was, it was "Tomlin's defense," and he would make almost all important decisions about it.

It's also been a topic of conversation for years that Tomlin does not have much of a coaching tree.

Maybe that caused issues within the coaching staff, and those issues would trickle down to the players, eventually leading to problems on the field. And maybe that led the Steelers to nine-straight years without a playoff win.

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

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