Could Pittsburgh Steelers coach really head to a hated rival next season?
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin may officially be on the hot seat after a brutal loss to the Buffalo Bills last Sunday. The Steelers are now just 6-6 and are clinging to their playoff lives heading into a Week 14 AFC North showdown with the Baltimore Ravens, and fans are understandably frustrated.
If Pittsburgh ultimately does fire Tomlin at the end of the season, there would surely be no shortage of potential suitors for the 53-year-old, but Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox has pitched an unthinkable landing spot for Tomlin: the Cincinnati Bengals.
"It's hard not to think that replacing Taylor with Tomlin wouldn't make the Bengals instantly better," Knox wrote. "And of the teams that might fire their current head coach to have a shot at Tomlin, Cincinnati should be the most attractive to him."
The Bengals definitely boast one of the most talented offenses in all of football, but we haven't gotten to see it all that much due to Joe Burrow's constant injury issues.
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin. Credit: Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images.And when Burrow has been healthy, Cincinnati's defense has been a major problem, but Knox feels that Tomlin could fix that.
"Tomlin could essentially focus on retooling the defense while allowing Burrow, Ja'Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Chase Brown and the rest of Cincinnati's playmakers to do what they do best for whomever he hires as the offensive coordinator—and Tomlin wouldn't struggle to find a capable coordinator willing to coach that group," Knox added.
Should the Steelers can Tomlin, nothing would stop him from bolting for a hated rival, regardless of how much the fans would despise the mere idea of it.
And to be quite frank, the Bengals would absolutely represent a very tantalizing option for Tomlin given the amount of talent on their roster.
Tomlin is now in his 19th season as Pittsburgh's head coach and has gone 189-113-2 while leading the Steelers to seven division titles, 12 playoff appearances, a couple of trips to the Super Bowl and a Super Bowl championship. He has also never logged a losing campaign.
However, the Steelers have not won a playoff game since January 2017, and the Steel City faithful are past the point of losing patience.