No offense taken. But let me ask you this. In 1986, the Steelers started 1-6 if I remember correctly. At that time, if you were around then (don't know how old you are) I don't think too many people were stating Noll's strengths. In fact, he made the front cover of SI around that time with Don Shula asking if the game had passed them by. In other words, maybe at one time he had them, but they went away was the theory. I think to be fair you have to put yourself in the context of the time.
None of that is relevant, because Noll
had already done it. Besides, Noll's coaching strengths were very evident. He built a team from scratch, turning the league's worst into the greatest of all-time in his very first attempt at doing so. He swept clean the trash of the previous era (in a harsh, matter-of-fact way) and built the team HE wanted.
Noll of course floundered in acquiring talent from the late 70s to mid-80s. But that happens to everyone. The reason Tomlin doesn't get a free pass (while Noll, Shula, and even many of today's good coaches do) is because Tomlin has NEVER done it. Ever. He's never come close. The only great player he's drafted is Antonio Brown; no others, not even the ultra-promising ones like Woodley/Wallace/Pouncey, ever reached the next level. In fact, most of them regressed. And when you compare that minimal success to the extraordinary failures at the top of his drafts, it's even worse. There's no denying we had a top-level roster in 2007, that it's fallen apart since, and that now it's starved for talent. No denying that our stance in the league has gone from perennial SB contender to playoff contender to non-playoff team to poor team.
That's why Tomlin doesn't get the benefit of the doubt, or the assumption that he'll wake up tomorrow and do it successfully. If you work your job for 7-8 years and suck at it, and your boss calls you out, can you tell him "Just trust me bro! I can totally do it"?
As it pertains to a coaches strengths, I just look at it differently. Noll's strength, Cowher's, Tomlin's when they won, Lombardi's, Walsh, whoever you want to pick, their strength was good players. They have all looked ordinary when the overall talent of the team was lacking.
That's misleading. Most of the great coaches had great players because
they acquired and developed them. You can't hold Noll's playing talent against him, because he's the one who implemented that talent. That'd be like saying "Joe Montana was only a great QB because he won some MVPs and all of his Super Bowls."
Besides, there have been plenty of coaches who have won with good, though not top-notch, talent. And Tomlin has overseen some spectacular failures even with great offensive and defensive talent in its prime. A HOF QB in his prime, great receivers, a punishing D, etc.
I think what has caught up to the Steelers, among other things, is they made Tomlin keep what was there as it pertains to coaches and philosophies, at least defensively. It surely worked out, with two SBs and one championship. But now it has caught them. Tomlin is going to be here. Better get used to it. As such, I think they should allow him to implement on defense what he knows best, and see if the guy can really coach.
Seems to me after 7+ years that the team doesn't trust him to do that. Not a good sign, considering the Rooneys gave Cowher full reign to create his own team as he saw fit. With Tomlin, either (a) the team doesn't trust him to implement his own systems, or (b) he's possibly the only coach in history with an ownership so rigid he doesn't get ANY gameplanning freedom IN HIS EIGHTH SEASON.
And why should they trust him like that? Dude had one year of DC experience, and his Viking D was bad that year. His in-game coaching flubs are so glaring they'd be comical if I weren't a Steeler fan. And his raggedy attempts at adding defensive talent - Hood, Worilds, Jarvis, Bruce Davis, his CB pet projects, etc. - don't inspire much confidence. What track record does the guy have that the Steelers should be banking on?
Lastly, what are you trying to prove? What are we willing to do? Those of you who are so against Tomlin, are you going to stop watching and going to games? What can we do to have an impact on who they keep as head coach? Anything? Even if you change everybody's opinion on this board it will have no impact on what the Steelers do. So what is your agenda?
Why the hell does this board even exist?
