Mike Tomlin Out as Steelers’ Head Coach

By Shane Hallam | Updated on Tue, Jan 13 2026 8:15 PM UTC

Steelers HC Mike Tomlin informed the team that he is stepping down as the head coach. The Steelers now will be looking for only their fourth head coach since 1969. Mike Tomlin has had a historic run as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach. He never had a losing season in 19 years as the Steelers' head coach. With one Super Bowl win and one loss, he made his mark on the franchise.

What They're Saying

Adam Schefter of ESPN: “Breaking: After a historic 19-season run in Pittsburgh, Mike Tomlin just informed his team that he is stepping down as the Steelers head coach, sources tell me.

The Steelers now will be looking for only their fourth head coach since 1969.”

Fantasy Football Impact

After the 30-6 loss to the Texans, Tomlin had lost seven straight playoff games in embarrassing fashion. The Steelers' move was a possibility, though a bit unexpected.

One of the major issues for Tomlin was the lack of a coaching tree. In 19 seasons, he didn’t truly have any of his assistants hired as head coaches elsewhere in the NFL. He was also the driving force behind selecting Kenny Pickett in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft.

Tomlin may step out of the NFL for a period of time, but he will be a hot coaching candidate among other teams in the future as a Hall of Fame coach.

The Steelers team and offense could look very different next year. If they do opt for an offensive head coach or bring in a strong offensive coordinator, the team could try to build that unit going forward. D.K. Metcalf remains the main anchor.

This also likely means QB Aaron Rodgers will move on from the Steelers.

A potential teardown and rebuild could happen, but that isn’t the Steelers way. They will likely continue to try to compete and find a candidate with defensive experience who can be a CEO type like Tomlin and Bill Cowher before him.

Shane Hallam, Writer

Shane has over 20 years of experience creating content and playing every fantasy football format, including redraft, dynasty, devy, C2C, IDP, CFF, and more. He is a multi-year winner of $500 dynasty leagues on the FFPC and a King's Classic Champion. Shane utilizes deep film and scheme study to enhance his fantasy performance. He led the industry in 2024 preseason Kicker Rankings and ranked second in preseason QB Rankings. He also ranked eighth in preseason IDP rankings.