'No And No!' Ravens' John Harbaugh Never Believed Steelers' Mike Tomlin Would Leave Pittsburgh
Near the end of last season, as three of the four AFC North teams were wrapping up playoff spots and the fourth was just missing out, rumors were swirling around the league that Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin might be on the hot seat.
Against the backdrop of the Baltimore Ravens taking the top seed in the AFC and the Browns and Steelers both making the postseason NFL tournament, somehow there was talk of Tomlin either wanting out or the team wanting him gone.
But Ravens coach John Harbaugh never bought any of it.
“No and no,” Harbaugh said Tuesday at the NFL Combine when he was asked about each scenario. “No and no. I have much respect, much love for coach Tomlin, for the Steelers organization, for the players.”
Tomlin is the longest-tenured coach in the league at 17 years, with Harbaugh right on his heels at 16.
They both have won Super Bowl titles, but for both, it's been more than a decade. And in a world of, "what have you done for me lately," that will only get them both so far without another one soon.
The Ravens came close last season, being ousted by the eventual champion Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC title game. But the Steelers last made a conference championship game in 2016, and have advanced beyond the Wild Card Round just twice since their last Super Bowl in 2010.
“We’ve looked at franchises like the Steelers over the years and always had an admiration for the way they conducted business,” Ravens general manager Eric DeCosta said. “Obviously, we are bitter rivals, but we believe continuity is critical to success in many different ways.
“From a coaching staff, the system is in place from the offense, the defense, having the same schemes. Players having the same coaches year after year is critical, and from a scouting perspective, building out your processes and the way you scout players, having the same scouts evaluating players every year, we believe it’s critically important to our success.”
