Mike Tomlin’s Steelers qualified for the postseason for the 12th time in 18 years. But they really limped to the finish line, losing their last four games. They squandered the opportunity to win the AFC North for the first time since 2020. And they may have to play the Ravens again, who are likely to knock them out of the playoffs.

It’s all coming to a head, and it has Steelers fans and others wondering about the future. Mike Tomlin seems to have a lifetime appointment here, but it’s okay to question why. After all, the Steelers haven’t won a playoff game since 2016, and they don’t seem a whole lot closer. So it’s probably time for something else, former NFL scout John Middlekauff says.

“Sometimes it’s just time for a change. Not all divorce has to be super anger and hatred. Sometimes, like, ‘Yeah, we’re both better off going our separate ways’”, Middlekauff argued on the 3 & Out podcast. “I understand why Mike Tomlin likes being the coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. It’s pretty cool. Pays well. Sweet brand. It’s just not really working. It clearly has run its course. Because the same thing’s happening now as last year, the previous year, the previous year. You’re gonna be 0-5 [in the playoffs] now since 2016 when next week comes to an end”.

Tomlin and the Steelers are going through the painful reminder of the most obvious fact in football. Having not had to worry for years, they are now experiencing what life is like without a franchise quarterback. Russell Wilson was once a franchise quarterback—he wouldn’t be here now if he still were.

Tomlin had Ben Roethlisberger for most of his tenure, and up until 2019, had the best of him. The Steelers haven’t had stable, quality quarterback play for the past six years. Wilson is the closest they’ve come since then, arguably, or at least since Roethlisberger retired. But is it enough?

And then it’s the question of who shoulders the blame for the lack of a quarterback solution. It’s not like three years is an incredibly long period of time to transition from one franchise quarterback to another. Tomlin and the Steelers took a swing on Kenny Pickett and then rolled the dice on Wilson. The question is what they do next.

I don’t think I need to say that the Steelers will not be firing Mike Tomlin. And they’re not going to trade him either—or at least, it would be incredibly surprising. But there is a reason we have this discussion every year, and the absence of postseason success is an immense factor. That doesn’t mean his potential job market isn’t bountiful. But things appear to have come to a head in Pittsburgh.

“His value is extremely high”, Middlekauff said of Tomlin. “I just wonder if you’re a Pittsburgh Steelers fan, what are we doing here? What are we doing here? Because we’ve got two teams in our division with Hall of Fame quarterbacks. I just don’t, and there’s no good answer”.

Many Steelers fans believe they have the answer. Of course, they also have the advantage of never having the opportunity to act on it and thus finding out they’re wrong or delusional because their plan is either stupid or impractical or even impossible. But there is no proof that Mike Tomlin’s answer is going to lead to anything we haven’t seen over and over in recent years, and people are tired of the reruns.