Mike Tomlin Praises Bill Nunn: 'He Never Got Distracted by the Football'

Around 2 p.m. on Tuesday, the Steelers organization turned all attention to recognizing former scout Bill Nunn.

As the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced Nunn as a finalist for 2021, the entire organization began sending praise and messages to the late Nunn and his family. Including Mike Tomlin, who opened his Tuesday press conference with his recognition.

"First, let me start by saying how excited we are as an organization that Bill Nunn took a significant step, another step closer toward Hall of Fame recognition as a contributor," Tomlin said. "We were just all so honored to be associated with him. We're just tickled that he's going to get the recognition that he deserves, and we share in that joy with his family. It's just an exciting day for us."

Nunn was originally a newspaper journalist in Pittsburgh before being hired by Dan Rooney to become an assistant personnel director in 1969.

Nunn was largely responsible for the Steelers scouting players from Historically Black Colleges. He's credited with scouting players like John Stallworth, Mel Blount, Donnie Shell, and others.

However, Tomlin acknowledged that what he remembers most about Nunn was his ability to scout more than a players' on-field work.

"I learned a lot from Bill, formally and informally," Tomlin said. "The journey that he walked that was his life was something to be learned. Strictly vocationally from a talent-evaluation standpoint, I was always really impressed how he never let football get in the way. His evaluation style was purely based on pedigree, knee and ankle flexibility, body control, fine motor skills, top-end speed, measurables, things of that nature. He never got distracted by the football, and he kept evaluations pure from a pedigree standpoint. I was always impressed and marked by that."

Steelers president Art Rooney II also released a statement, congratulating Nunn and his family.

"I am beyond thrilled to hear Bill Nunn has been selected a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a contributor," Rooney II said. "Bill's contributions to the Steelers were extraordinary over the 46 years he was part of the organization. He was a special person that was a close friend and mentor before his passing in 2014. His lessons and stories are still evident in our everyday work.

"I look forward to hopefully celebrating his induction next year at the Pro Football Hall of Fame. His legacy and career deserve to be recognized with the greatest individual honor in football. And we are excited he was chosen by the contributor committees as a finalist."

Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.