Steelers’ Wild History of Head Coaches Since 1969: Mike Tomlin, Two Other Big Names

Also take a look at how many NFL teams have had six or more coaching changes since Tomlin took over in Pittsburgh in 2007.

The Steelers have had three head coaches since 1969. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Mike Tomlin stepped down as the Steelers’ head coach on Tuesday following 19 seasons in Pittsburgh. All 19 of those seasons resulted in non-losing records (three .500 seasons), and Tomlin led the franchise to its sixth Super Bowl title to cap off the 2008 season. This is a legacy that will be difficult to follow in Pittsburgh.

Tomlin’s replacement will have some big shoes to fill, that’s for sure, and some high expectations placed on them. They'll be just the fourth person to coach the franchise since the merger.

The Steelers franchise isn’t used to change, especially at the head coach position. All three of their head coaches in the modern era remained in Pittsburgh for at least 15 seasons, remarkable durability in a league largely obsessed with leadership turnover. Will that pattern remain the same moving forward?

Here’s a look at the Steelers’ coaching history since 1969.

Steelers head coaches since 1969

Coach	Years	Seasons	Accomplishments	Overall Record
Chuck Noll	1969-91	23	Four Super Bowl titles, Pro Football Hall of Famer	209–156–1
Bill Cowher	1992-2006	15	One Super Bowl title, 1992 Coach of the Year, Pro Football Hall of Famer	161–99–1
Mike Tomlin	2007-2025	19	One Super Bowl title, Most consecutive non-losing seasons to begin a coaching career	201–126–2

NFL teams to have multiple coaches during Tomlin’s 19 seasons in Pittsburgh

Coaching for 19 consecutive seasons is a huge accomplishment. Here are some examples of other NFL teams that have had the most coaching turnover since Tomlin took over the Steelers in 2007.

Team	Number of Coaches Since ‘07	Current Coaching Situation
Raiders	11	HC role open after Pete Carroll’s firing
Broncos	10	Sean Payton finishing out third season
Browns	9	HC role open after Kevin Stefanski’s firing
Jaguars	9	Liam Coen heading into second season
Panthers	8	Dave Canales heading into third season
Dolphins	8	HC role open after Mike McDaniel’s firing
Giants	7	HC role open after Brian Daboll’s mid-season firing
Falcons	7	HC role open after Raheem Morris’s firing
Jets	7	Aaron Glenn heading into second season
Bears	7	Ben Johnson finishing out first season
49ers	7	Kyle Shanahan finishing out ninth season
Bills	7	Sean McDermott finishing out ninth season
Texans	7	DeMeco Ryans finishing out third season
Lions	7	Dan Campbell heading into sixth season
Buccaneers	7	Todd Bowles heading into fifth season
Titans	7	HC role open after Brian Callahan’s firing
Rams	6	Sean McVay finishing out ninth season
Chargers	6	Jim Harbaugh heading into third season
Colts	6	Shane Steichen heading into fourth season

So, there’s 19 NFL teams that have had at least six head coaching changes in the past 19 seasons, all while Tomlin was coaching in Pittsburgh. It’s likely we won’t see a tenure like this in the NFL for quite some time, if ever.

---