Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin wouldn’t answer questions about his future with the organization following their playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills on Monday.
One reporter began her question with, “Mike, your contract still has a year left.”
The coach looked around and then stepped off the stage.
The emotional moment came after the Bills defeated the Steelers 31-17.
Josh Allen had 203 passing yards, three touchdown passes, 74 rushing yards and a 52-yard rushing touchdown.
The Steelers had trouble dealing with Bills players and for the most part stuttered on offense.
Buffalo defeated Pittsburgh 368-324 and turned the ball over to the Steelers twice.Speculation about Tomlin’s status with the organization arose midway through the season as the Steelers began to struggle.
The team won their final three matches of the regular season to advance to the play-offs. Pittsburgh faced turmoil during the season, with issues cropping up between wide receivers Diontae Johnson and George Pickens.
The team also fired offensive coordinator Matt Canada during the season.
Combine that with the team starting three quarters and the season becomes immensely more difficult.
However, Pittsburgh managed to go 10-7 and hit .500 or better for the 20th straight year.Tomlin represents the successful lineage of Steelers coaches over the years.
He won a Super Bowl in his second year after replacing Bill Cowher.
Cowher took over from Chuck Noll in 1992. Noll had been the coach since 1969 and won four Super Bowls. No team has had as much technical success as the Steelers.
