Former Steelers’ QB Ben Roethlisberger sounds excited to send Mike Tomlin to Cowboys

Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has had some interesting thoughts about his former head coach, Mike Tomlin. After another abrupt playoff exit, questions have surrounded Tomlin and his job security, as well as availability across the league.

The Dallas Cowboys recently fired their head coach, Mike McCarthy, which leaves the position wide open. Even in a possible move, it’s not as easy as it looks. Interestingly enough, Roethlisberger mentioned that he believes Tomlin has a lot of pull behind the scenes with the Steelers which would mean he’s in control of his job uniquely.

Still, the former Pittsburgh quarterback sounded excited on the Footbahlin Podcast when asked about where Tomlin could go.

“I know Coach Tomlin’s got two years left, we can get into that whole thing,” Roethlisberger said. “Not that the Cowboys are the Steelers rival, but they are in terms of like ‘America’s Team.’ The Cowboys want to be America’s Team, we are America’s Team.

“But I feel like that would be a place that Tomlin would want to go. It’s the Big D, it’s the Big Defense, he’s a defensive guy. I see him wearing Cowboy hats to press conferences and his shades, and cowboy boots. I can see Tomlin pulling all that.”

Why does Ben Roethlisberger think Mike Tomlin could leave the Steelers?

Over the past 60 years, the franchise has only had three head coaches. Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, and Tomlin round up those men. While each has won a Super Bowl, it’s been a long while for the Steelers since that happened. However, some of the criticisms surrounding Tomlin resurfaced this season.

Tomlin is a defensive guy, which has been one of the criticisms of his time in Pittsburgh. As a result, he had a conservative offense approach this past season and hoped to manage the game on offense, so they could win with their defense. Even with dynamic quarterbacks like Justin Fields and Russell Wilson, it didn’t matter much.

At the end of the day, Tomlin has a no-trade clause to his contract. Meaning if the Steelers were to try and trade him, he would have to approve of it. Although he remains content in Pittsburgh, the franchise might not feel the same. Even Tony Dungy would understand the Steelers moving on from Tomlin to a certain degree.

Going back to the Cowboys, they could use Tomlin immensely. His consistency could spark some life into a deflated franchise. Plus, he’ll work with an elite defense. No matter what, the Steelers head coach ultimately decides where he’ll end up.