Mike Tomlin has broken his silence -- and filled the air with nothing but gratitude.
Tomlin spoke publicly on Thursday for the first time since stepping down from his post as head coach of the Steelers in January. His message was simple: To quote , "thanks for the memories."
"It's often said we're not here for a long time, we're here for a good time, like you have to choose," Tomlin said during his award acceptance speech at The Ireland Funds Pittsburgh Gala, via an Instagram post from . "And I think our experience here in Pittsburgh and with the great Steelers organization exemplifies that -- we were here for a long and really good time."
After 19 seasons of perennial success in Pittsburgh, Tomlin chose to exit on his own terms, stunning the football world by leaving the Steelers voluntarily and ending a run of nearly two decades of nothing but .500 or better football in the Steel City. His departure was a surprise but not entirely unexpected, given Pittsburgh's inability to advance beyond Wild Card Weekend over the last decade, but he never said a proper public goodbye before departing.
That changed Thursday. But first, in properly chivalrous fashion, his wife, Kiya, delivered a message of appreciation.
"We never did it for the recognition, but I just want to thank you," she said. "More importantly, I want to thank all the many communities in Pittsburgh that really welcomed us with open arms. It has truly been an honor to serve Pittsburgh for 19 years. Thank you."
Tomlin wasn't done, of course. The master of idioms and motivational phrases (plus a true king of the Tuesday morning filibuster), Tomlin ensured he'd make his message clear.
"It's been an honor to serve the greatest organization in sports," he said. "It's been an honor to be a part of this great community, to call it home, for our kids to call it home. We're in somewhat of a nomadic business, and so we don't take that for granted, that our kids get an opportunity to call Pittsburgh home.
"It's been an honor to serve the community in which we live, its values that we hold, and it will continue. We appreciate the recognition, but as my wife said, we certainly don't do it for that. We've been extremely blessed, man, and we'd just like to share those blessings. We thank you."
Pittsburgh has moved forward with a native son in Mike McCarthy as Tomlin's replacement. Judging by his retreat into relative anonymity following his departure from the Steelers, Tomlin is enjoying his time away from coaching. But he'll never forget the memories he made in Pittsburgh -- and neither will Steelers fans near and far.
