Steelers Former Two-Time Super Bowl Champion Guard Explains Mike Tomlin’s Coaching Style

This year marked the end of an era in Pittsburgh. After Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin stepped down in January, the team hired Mike McCarthy as its new head coach. Many current and former players have shared their thoughts about Tomlin since he resigned. Two-time Super Bowl Champion guard Kendall Simmons is the latest to do so.

During a recent appearance on the Red Zone Blitz podcast, Simmons discussed what he learned from Tomlin and what he’s carried over to his own coaching career. Simmons said, “The one thing that I do not have is all of those Tomlinisms that I don’t think anybody could ever do that because he comes up with some stuff and I’m like, ‘wow, where in the world did he come up with that?’” He added, “I would say the coaching style, which I would say at first when he first got there, it somewhat rubbed me the wrong way, but the longer I’m around him and I was there, I appreciated it. He is so blunt and straightforward that if you don’t want to know the answer, don’t ask him because he’s going to tell you the truth. That’s what we need. That’s what we all need.”

Tomlin was respected and beloved by his players, even Simmons. The two-time Super Bowl Champion discussed how he grew to understand that Tomlin’s blunt communication style wasn’t a flaw. He explained, “It’s going to hurt your feelings at times, but if a person is around you long enough and they see things, you want them to be blunt with you and say, ‘hey, look, that is awesome’ or, ‘no, you're effing up.’ That’s the one thing why I think that I only had him for two years, but the players after me who had him for a long time, T.J. Watt and all, they love him because I ain’t going to tell them what he said to them that has hurt their feelings and built them back up to where they needed to be at.”

Tomlin coached to make his players better, even if it meant telling them something that hurt their feelings. His blunt, direct communication style proved to be effective. In his 19 seasons with the team, he never had a losing season. Tomlin created a lasting legacy during his career with the Steelers.