The new year has been shaky for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Days after getting blown out 30-6 by the Houston Texans in the Wild Card round, head coach Mike Tomlin decided to step down after 19 seasons and zero losing records.
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Tomlin’s decision came as a shock, especially since there were no reports of him losing the locker room. Nor did the Rooney family appear eager for a change, despite the team’s ongoing playoff win drought. In fact, Art Rooney said after Tomlin’s exit that he had planned to let him coach for at least another year.
The longtime Steelers leader chose to leave on his own terms. Even inside the Steelers’ building, almost no one saw the decision coming. That included Cam Heyward, the emotional backbone of the franchise and one of Tomlin’s longest-tenured leaders.
Speaking on Not Just Football, Heyward admitted he’s “still processing the news,” describing it as one of the most jarring weeks of his life. “I went into that exit meeting just trying to figure out what I was doing,” he began.
“Then to lose the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers… The face of the team… That’s who it is, man. It was shocking for us. I don’t think anybody went in that day thinking Mike T was [moving on],” Heyward added.
What made the moment even heavier was something Tomlin told Heyward privately. It revealed just how deeply he understands the weight of history in Pittsburgh.
“I will share one thing he did say to me. And I was like, ‘How the hell do you even think of this?’ He was just like, you know, ‘I’m glad I didn’t beat [Chuck] Noll’s record.’ And I was like, like, who thinks about that?” Heyward recalled asking.
Tomlin tied Chuck Noll with 193 regular-season wins this campaign, finishing just shy of surpassing him in total wins and games coached. Statistically, he was within arm’s reach of becoming the most decorated coach in franchise history.
But context matters in Pittsburgh. Noll, who was head coach of the Steelers from 1969 to 1991, isn’t just a name in the record book. He’s the architect of the Steelers’ identity, the man who built the dynasty. He delivered four Super Bowls, including back-to-back ones in 1974 and ’75. He set the cultural foundation that still defines the organization.
For Tomlin, who cherished and upheld Pittsburgh’s culture, eclipsing Noll wasn’t something he wanted to chase blindly. “That’s the respect he’s always had for the history and what Noll did,” Heyward added.
The star defensive tackle then revealed that he had multiple emotional conversations with his coach after the exit decision. “There was a lot that needed to be said and still a lot that needs to be said,” he admitted. Yet despite his disappointment, one thing remained clear: “But we have to respect his decision,” Heyward said.
With Tomlin now planning to spend a year in broadcasting, Heyward believes that his former head coach will excel here as well. “That dude is capable of whatever he wants… He is a genius when it comes to football — really studies the game, really connects… If he goes into TV, if he goes into consulting, he’s going to be great at it,” he said.
As things stand, the Pittsburgh Steelers move forward without the only head coach many of their players have ever known. And for veterans like Cam Heyward, the emotion is still settling in.
“You don’t know how good you got until it’s gone,” he said. And that may end up being the truest legacy of Mike Tomlin in Pittsburgh: Not the records he chased, but the ones he chose not to break.
