It capped a season in which they won their last four games despite starting the year with a six-game losing streak. Despite missing out on the playoffs for the 11th time in 16 seasons, the Steeler fans have not suffered a losing season since Bill Cowher went 6-10 in 2000.
Mike Tomlin will be at an event for members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. There will be a table for the game's best coaches, and there will be a seat for Mike Tomlin. There will probably be a table for coaches with Super Bowl rings, as well. The only coach in NFL history to never have a losing season will have a table in the corner.
In a league that does everything it can to discourage, discount, and disregard men that look like him from coaching, Tomlin is one of the best of all time.
The part of the column where I brag the most is this one. Before this season started, I begged my colleagues at Deadspin not to write off the man. They all agreed that this was the year in which Pittsburgh would lose more games than they would win because of quarterback play, lack of explosive weapons on both sides of the ball, and time. The people at FiveThirtyEight didn't think that the Steelers would finish with a winning record.
They didn't believe in him but I did.
What's the reason?
I don't generally believe people until they show me who they are, and Tomlin has never shown anyone that he's capable of a losing season. The plight of Black head coaches in the NFL is typified by the fact that they are viewed by fans and the media in a negative way. He has been through a lot during his tenure, but he is not considered one of the best three-to-five coaches in the league. He doesn't give his full credit when he succeeds and when things aren't looking good people doubt him.
There are sixteen seasons. There were two Super Bowls. There is only one Super Bowl ring. Losing seasons. The second- youngest coach to win the trophy was the one who lifted it. People thought that Mitchell Trubisky and Kenny Pickett were going to be the end of Tomlin, in a season in which the rookies defeated Deshaun and Carr.
If he were white, he would be one of the greatest coaches in the history of the game. The day this column was written was "Black Monday", which is when teams fire head coaches. The short end of the stick has historically been given to black coaches. There are only a few cases in which Black coaches get opportunities.
In 257 of the 258 games that he has coached in Pittsburgh, his teams have been in the playoffs. People doubted him because most humans don't like learning from their mistakes.
The best thing that he did was not extend his streak. He hired Brian Flores after he was fired as head coach in Miami. The Dolphins gave their new head coach all the bells and whistles that Flores didn't have.
The Dolphins were able to get into the playoffs despite losing five of their last six games and needing a 50-yard field goal to beat the Jets. It was the same record as Brian Flores had before he was fired. This entire column has been an example of the plight of Black coaches in the NFL, and that goes for the ones who have never had a losing season, and the ones who would rather win their last game of the season.
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