A recent report revealed that a member of the New York Giants’ ownership team “reached out to Mike Tomlin shortly after Tomlin stepped down as” head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers on Jan. 13. The Giants allegedly learned that Tomlin “does not plan to coach in 2026.”
NFL insider Jay Glazer of Fox Sports has seemingly had inside information regarding Tomlin’s mindset over the years. During Tuesday’s edition of the “Wake Up Barstool” program, Glazer insisted that Tomlin won’t be changing his mind for any potential gig this winter.
Mike Tomlin seemingly wants this known about his short-term future
“Everybody has called about Mike Tomlin,” Glazer explained, per Alex Kozora of Steelers Depot. “I probably had seven teams call me to see if Mike T. would think about coming back out and coaching again. I’m like, ‘No, not happening.’ And then I got, I think I had all seven teams coming back again saying, ‘Hey, has he changed his mind?’ No, he definitely hasn’t changed his mind. That’s definitely not happening.”
Previous stories indicated that Tomlin wanted a break from coaching after he spent 19 seasons with Pittsburgh, but that was before the Buffalo Bills dismissed head coach Sean McDermott on Monday. A subsequent report suggested one reason the Bills didn’t view Tomlin as a possible replacement for McDermott was that the Steelers would want more for Tomlin’s services than what the Denver Broncos had to give the New Orleans Saints in early 2023 for head coach Sean Payton.
Denver sent New Orleans a 2023 first-round draft pick and a 2024 second-round selection for Payton and the Saints’ 2024 third-round choice. Back in June 2024, Tomlin signed a three-year contract extension
with the Steelers that included a team option for 2027.
How “done” is Mike Tomlin as an NFL coach?
There was also speculation that Tomlin could want to receive a contract similar to the five-year deal worth “$100M plus lucrative bonuses” that John Harbaugh recently received from the Giants. It sounds like teams have been told to put their checkbooks away as it pertains to courting Tomlin.
“That’s not happening,” Glazer added about Tomlin possibly being an option for the Bills. “Mike T’s done.”
It remains to be seen what “done” means in this instance. That said, it appears Tomlin has told anybody who will listen that he’s serious about not coaching for any team next season.