By Jeff Howe, Zach Powell, Kevin Fishbain and Adam Jahns
Just days after Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin reiterated his plans to remain in Pittsburgh, the longtime Steelers coach is still receiving interest. The Chicago Bears and at least one other team have contacted the Steelers about Tomlin’s availability in a trade, according to a league source.
The Steelers have rejected those inquiries and informed teams that Tomlin’s contract includes a no-trade clause, as first reported by ESPN.
The interest from other teams comes just four days after Tomlin told potential trade suitors to “save your time.” Tomlin, who signed a three-year contract extension last offseason to make him one of the NFL’s five highest-paid coaches, has led Pittsburgh since 2007. He works for an organization that doesn’t merely hire and fire coaches abruptly, given the Steelers’ track record of only three head coaches since 1969.
Bears show they’re serious
Well, at least, the Bears tried. Calling the Steelers about Tomlin’s availability fits with the Bears’ wide-ranging search. Pittsburgh said no — as Tomlin recently said as much himself — and that’s fine. It’s good that the Bears made the call. But it’s important not to get carried away with the news. The Bears might be willing to spend on their next head coach, and inquiring about Tomlin might show how serious they are about getting this right under president/CEO Kevin Warren and general manager Ryan Poles.
But the franchise is still looking for its sixth head coach since 2012. Tomlin’s record isn’t much better than Mike McCarthy’s and McCarthy would be a play caller for quarterback Caleb Williams. Under Tomlin, the Steelers have had four offensive coordinators since 2018. Life after Ben Roethlisberger has been a challenge. The Steelers’ search for their next quarterback continues. They didn’t get it right with Kenny Pickett, the 20th pick in 2022, and Russell Wilson didn’t solve their issues this season, either. — Adam Jahns, Bears beat writer
GO DEEPER
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Taking big swings makes sense
Poles, when asked specifically about the possibility of trading for a coach after the season, said, “We’ll look at all avenues to get the best coach here.” As we’ve seen in this extensive coaching search, the Bears are not ruling out many options. Warren lauded what the Bears offer — from the fans to the history to the salary-cap space to a promising young quarterback in Williams. If he truly believes that coaches should view this as a prime coaching opportunity, then he should pick up the phone and take some big swings.
The question is, who else did the Bears call? This isn’t necessarily about whether or not Tomlin would be a good fit (he’d be the best coach of the Bears since Mike Ditka and it wouldn’t be close — then again, so would McCarthy and Pete Carroll, who have interviewed for the job), but a sign of the Bears’ frame of mind. While a trade is incredibly unlikely to happen, it’s a positive that they’re showing willingness to be aggressive. One thing to monitor, though, is if this wide-ranging pursuit reaches a juncture where the Bears could lose a good coach because they want to keep talking to people. We’re not there yet, but in-person interviews can pick up next week, which would start to speed up the clock. — Kevin Fishbain, Bears beat writer
(Photo: Rob Carr / Getty Images)
