Mike Tomlin Has Best Odds to Win NFL Coach of the Year
The Pittsburgh Steelers are off to a remarkable 7-2 start. Unless the Steelers completely collapse in the final eight games, Mike Tomlin will have an 18th consecutive non-losing season. He needs just two more wins to accomplish that feat.
The Steelers over/under win total heading into 2024 was 8.5. To say the least, the Steelers have exceeded expectations, and Tomlin certainly deserves his flowers. His bold move to insert quarterback Russell Wilson into the start lineup has electrified the offense.
The Steelers are 3-0 under Wilson and the passing game has been significantly better compared to with Justin Fields. Wilson has completed 58.8% of his passes for 737 yards, six touchdowns, one interception, and a 105.9 quarterback rating. The Steelers are also averaging 30.3 points per game in three games with Wilson under center.
BetOnline.ag currently has Tomlin as the favorite to win NFL Coach of the Year with 3/1 odds. Tomlin went from fifth at 9/1 to 3/1 following Sunday’s 28-27 win over the red-hot 7-2 Washington Commanders. The Steelers have a huge AFC North showdown with the Baltimore Ravens at Acrisure Stadium on Sunday. If they can get past Baltimore, watch out. This team could have a legitimate chance at competing for a Super Bowl.
Dan Quinn of the Commanders (7/2), Jim Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens (19/4), Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs (5/1) and Dan Campbell of the Detroit Lions (5/1) round out the top 5 in NFL COY odds.
Tomlin has led the Steelers to a 7-2 record for the first time since 2017. That season, the Steelers finished 13-3 and earned the second seed in the AFC–putting Tomlin in talks of Coach of the Year if not for Sean McVay’s rookie coaching season. After the Week 10 win, ESPN analyst Mike Greenberg tabbed Tomlin as the Coach of the Year.
“I’m old enough to remember when Steelers fans wanted to be done with Mike Tomlin. Right now, he’s the #NFL coach of the year,” Greenberg wrote on X.
Tomlin told Jay Glazer of Fox Sports last month that he was a lone ranger in the decision to start Wilson. It was a controversial move at the time, but it indeed was the right decision.
“I can appreciate Mike Tomlin even more now,” former NFL wide receiver Nate Burleson said on CBS’ NFL Today. “He was getting a lot of flak for pulling Justin Fields and then putting Russell Wilson into the lineup. Everyone is questioning, ‘How do you do that when you have a winning record and it seems like everything is good? If this goes wrong, it’s going to all come crashing down on the head coach.’ He was right. He was right. This offense has a better flow. There is this dynamic of the long ball that wasn’t there before. And you see the growth of Pickens and that combination with Russell Wilson throwing that looping moon ball. It’s not a 50/50 ball when it’s him and the DB. It’s more like 90/10, 95/5. Like that guy is showing up every time that ball is up in the air, so I just appreciate Mike Tomlin for making that decision.”
Bill Cowher is the only Steelers head coach to ever win the Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year Award. He was named NFL COY in 1992 after leading the Steelers to a 11-5 record in his first season. If Tomlin leads the Steelers to an AFC North title, it will be hard for the AP to not award him with NFL Coach of the Year.
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