Steelers' Mike Tomlin may already have next job lined up

Mike Tomlin will serve as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers for at least their upcoming home wild-card playoff game versus the Houston Texans after Pittsburgh clinched the AFC North division title by earning a gritty 26-24 win over the rival Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night. 

Before Sunday's prime-time game kicked off, NFL insider Mike Florio of NBC Sports/Pro Football Talk indicated that Tomlin may be ready to take a break from coaching after the Steelers play their final contest of the postseason tournament. 

Does Mike Tomlin need a break from coaching?

"19 years for Mike Tomlin here in Pittsburgh," Florio explained, per Matt Clapp of Awful Announcing. "He’s never had a losing record. And it wasn’t that long ago that these same folks were chanting, 'Fire Tomlin.' Nobody expects the Steelers to fire Mike Tomlin. But, but, could this be the time that he makes a detour to a different industry? There’s a lot of steam about Tomlin maybe heading to TV. That’s going to be something to watch whenever the dust settles on this season."

Talk about Tomlin eventually walking away from the Steelers to work as a studio or in-game analyst for one of the NFL's main media partners has hovered over the club since at least last winter. More recently, it was suggested throughout December that the one-time Super Bowl champion head coach could take "a breather" from working on the sidelines, in part because he is "tired." 

In June 2024, Tomlin signed a three-year contract extension that included a team option for 2027, which must be exercised by March 1 of this year. Perhaps he and/or the Steelers have already made a call about that option. 

Does Mike Tomlin already have his next gig in mind?

"There’s been plenty of chatter about Tomlin taking a TV job," Florio wrote for a piece published later on Sunday night. "And there’s also plenty of chatter about Tomlin possibly having something lined up already, if he decides to take it. Whether it’s tonight or at some point during the postseason, Tomlin could be doing what his Pittsburgh predecessor Bill Cowher did, stepping down as coach before stepping into a broadcasting job."

It's unclear what network could hire Tomlin later this year. Meanwhile, DraftKings Sportsbook had the 10-7 Steelers as three-point home underdogs for the Jan. 12 wild-card matchup versus the 12-5 Texans as of Monday morning.