Mike Tomlin never experienced a losing season in 19 years in Pittsburgh, but the club's lack of recent playoff success played a role in his decision to walk away from the club, the new NBC Sports analyst told Maria Taylor in his first interview since moving on.
"It's probably not an overnight decision," Tomlin said in an interview that aired Sunday night, . "But it's probably not something that I could articulate or share with people. There's a loneliness with leadership. I just thought it was a good time for me, personally. And by that, I mean just where I am in life. And I thought it was a good time for the organization, to be quite honest with you. We didn't have a lot of success in the playoffs in recent years."
The Steelers have not won a postseason game since the 2016 season, and have not reached the Super Bowl since 2010.
The biggest remaining question in Pittsburgh with Mike McCarthy taking over is whether Aaron Rodgers will return for another season. Tomlin, for one, believes the 42-year-old will indeed return to Pittsburgh.
"I just think, Aaron, I just think being around him for the 12 months that I'm around him, he's got a love affair with the game of football and not only the game, but the process, the informal moments, the development of younger guys, the interaction with teammates," he said. "I think he has an addiction to that, and there's only one way to feed it. And certainly, he is still capable and in really good shape. And so I think at the end of the day, he'll play football."
If Rodgers decides to play a 22nd season, he'll return to a suddenly crowded quarterback room in Pittsburgh, with the Steelers drafting Penn State's Drew Allar in the third round to join veteran Mason Rudolph and 2025 sixth-rounder Will Howard.
For now, the world waits on Rodgers' announcement.
