It has been 14 seasons since the Steelers won a Super Bowl and 13 seasons since they played in one. However, since 2008, they are the only team that has maintained a consecutive winning record, something that is usually brought up when talks of replacing Mike Tomlin come up. Nevertheless, once the NFL revealed the schedule for the 2017 season, Colin Cowherd didn’t believe Tomlin would be able to continue his run.
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During the recent episode of ‘The Herd’, Colin asserted that the Steelers’ schedule is one of the toughest schedules he has ever set his eyes on, especially their matchups after Thanksgiving Day. He suggested that Tomlin will face severe challenges, potentially leading to a losing season, marking the end of his tenure in Pittsburgh.
Already with a diminishing QB in Russell Wilson and an ineffectual Justin Fields, the situation becomes tougher as they are set to face the Ravens, Bengals, and Browns twice, and they also take on the Chiefs and Eagles—teams with some of the league’s top quarterbacks.
“That is the toughest schedule I have ever seen, thanksgiving on in league history. Mike Tomlin has never had a losing season. He’s going to have a losing season. They end the year with a declining QB Wilson and a kid behind him that wants to play. They end the season with Lamar Jackson twice, Watson twice, Burrow twice, Mahomes and Hurts. That is brutal. It will be college football like getting three Georgias, 2 Bamas, an Ohio State and a Clemson in a row.”
Tomlin has been lauded year after year for doing the best he can with some of the worst QB play, off-field controversies, and a poisonous receiving room.
Even though he had Roethlisberger for the better part of his career, Ben’s performance declined at the later end of his career. After Roethlisberger, he had to work with quarterbacks like Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, Devlin Hodges, and Mitch Trubisky, who never fully developed.
While Mike Tomlin hasn’t had a losing record in 16 years, he has missed playoffs on six occasions and hasn’t been to the Super Bowl since 2010. The team has underachieved in the playoffs even when they topped their division, unable to translate their regular season performances into wins in the postseason. While he has a .631 record in the regular season, The Steelers head coach has won only 8 playoff games, lost 10, and has a record of .444.
It’s important to remember, though, that Art Rooney II, the majority owner of the Steelers, also believes his team has been treated unfairly and understands that given their schedule, it will be a challenging season ahead.
Steelers Owner Discusses 2024 NFL Schedule
Art Rooney II, who has been the team’s president since 2002 and majority owner since 2017, sat down with the Steelers’ Missy Matthews to express his thoughts on the 2024 schedule. Art is excited to have 4 primetime games and a Christmas fixture, but he feels it will be a challenging task for his team.
He hoped that they would get an early season opener, but what’s done is done, and they will deal with it to the best of their abilities. The Steelers don’t take on an AFC North opponent until week 11, and after that, the club plays 6 games from week 11 to week 18.
However, he feels the fans will be excited about those prime-time games with the Cowboys, Jets, and Giants coming to Pittsburgh. They are not taking anything for granted. The Steelers open the season on the road against the Falcons on September 8th. They also take on the Chiefs on Christmas Day.
Given the tough schedule, the season presents quite a situation for Mike Tomlin, as a losing season might just spell the end of his time with the franchise. The team hasn’t had success in the playoffs and Art Rooney might be looking for a reversal of fortune. For a franchise that prides itself on being one of the most successful ones in NFL history, keeping a winning record shouldn’t be enough.
