The Pittsburgh Steelers and the fans of the organization are some of the few in the NFL that have been able to enjoy consistency. Some franchises have new head coaches and leadership every other season. Meanwhile, the Steelers have only had three head coaches since the 1969 campaign. Currently, Head Coach Mike Tomlin is going through his 18th season in the role, and he has just clinched his 18th consecutive non-losing season. While Tomlin has seen a lot of success on the field, he is known throughout the league as the ultimate players' coach.
Tomlin is known for building extremely close relationships with his players and his ability to coach them through the toughest of times. In the Steelers' most recent win over the Cincinnati Bengals, Tomlin was seen coaching up George Pickens after a bad play early in the game, and the receiver bounced back thanks to Tomlin. One former Steeler that owes a lot to Tomlin is Willie Colon, who was a guard for Pittsburgh for seven seasons. Colon missed all of the 2010 season and nearly all of the 2011 season due to injury, and he recently shared a story with The Athletic of how Tomlin helped him through that.
"That put me in a really, really bad place," Colon said of his injuries. "Not only mentally, but spiritually. I couldn’t understand why this was happening to me. I loved football so much. He did something that a lot of coaches don’t do: He allowed me to travel with the team, which pretty much saved me. I was in a deep, deep depression. There were times I wouldn’t leave the crib. I’d just be in there drinking and doing God knows what. He was like, 'No, man, we’re not going to leave you behind.' I’m not trying to get choked up talking about it because I just remember that place I was in. It was a dark spot.”
Colon tore his Achilles ahead of the 2010 season which caused him to miss the entire year, and he then tore his triceps during the season opener of the 2011 season. That would be the last game Colon played for Pittsburgh, but Tomlin still treated the offensive lineman like family.
"I’m not trying to be over romantic about this or weird about it, but he saved me. He saved my life," Colon said.
Injuries like this can put an athlete in a tough place. Having to watch your team go at it from the sidelines every week for two years straight has to take a serious mental toll on a player, but Tomlin always made sure that Colon was in a good spot.
Colon was released by the Steelers following the 2011 season, and he eventually signed a one-year deal with the New York Jets. He played in New York through the 2015 season before retiring. Colon was never considered one of the best linemen in the league, but he had a nice and steady career, and a lot of that is because of Tomlin. Colon could have easily given up on football after either one of his season-ending injuries, but Tomlin made sure that didn't happen, and kept his player involved.
Steelers' Mike Tomlin Is Finally Getting The Love He Deserves
Tomlin has been one of the most successful coaches in the NFL since taking over the job in Pittsburgh ahead of the 2007 season. Despite that, he has never won the NFL's Coach of the Year Award.
He is currently one of the most favored coaches to win the award, and his team looks poised for a playoff run, which has come as a shock to many. Fans around the NFL have also begun to see what a semi-unfiltered Tomlin looks like thanks to HBO's Hard Knocks.
