Steelers owner Art Rooney II reflects on Mike Tomlin's stellar 19-year tenure, highlighting leadership, consistency, and unwavering class.
Being in a partnership for 19 years has its ups and downs. Yet, it also causes a bond to develop between two people.
Not surprisingly, Steelers owner Art Rooney II and coach Mike Tomlin had a close relationship over almost two decades of working together.
So, it was difficult for both men on Tuesday when Tomlin told Rooney he was resigning. After all, Tomlin was the longest-tenured head coach or manager in the four major North American professional sports leagues.
“It was an emotional day for everybody in our organization yesterday,” Rooney said on Wednesday during a press conference. “Mike has been a great leader of our organization for 19 years. The values of our organization. I think you all know his many accomplishments, two Super Bowl appearances, one Super Bowl victory, many AFC North titles, and many, many wins. And the bottom line was, we were always in contention with Mike, and that's what counts.”
Indeed, the Steelers never had a losing season during Tomlin’s tenure. His regular-season record was 193-114-2, tying Hall of Famer Chuck Noll for the most wins in Steelers’ history. The Steelers also went to the playoffs 13 times under Tomlin, won eight AFC North titles, two AFC championships, and one Super Bowl title.
However, Tomlin struggled to win in the playoffs, something that tarnished his legacy later in his career. Tomlin was just 8-12 in the postseason, losing his last seven games, including getting routed 30-6 by the Houston Texans on Monday night in an AFC Wild Card Game at Acrisure Stadium. Six of those last seven defeats were by double digits, and the last four losses were by an average of 18.3 points per game.
Rooney, though, only wanted to reflect on the totality of Tomlin’s time with the Steelers and his leadership ability on Wednesday.
“More than his accomplishments, Mike was a steady and respected leader, caring deeply about our players, our staff, and the whole Steelers organization,” Rooney said. “He represented the Steelers with class and dignity every single day. And on behalf of my family and everyone connected with the Steelers, I want to thank Mike and his family for being part of Steelers football for the last 19 years. We'll always be grateful.”