I have no idea what's going on with the Steelers head-coaching job, but depending on who you believe, Mike Tomlin's the guy (did I ever tell you about the time me and Mike were hangin' out in college... ).I admit to being kinda shocked when I first heard it. In recent days I'd been leaning toward the Tomlin hire, but when it actually happened (or, at least, when it was first reported in SI), I started having second thoughts.
I'm over it. I like it, but like Eric mentioned in the comments, I'm now concerned about what the defense will look like going forward. The Steelers don't necessarily have to switch to the 4-3 just because Tomlin is a "Cover-2" guy. I mean, the Patriots play the 3-4, 4-3, and everything in between. And the Ravens have a lot of different fronts too. No reason to think Pittsburgh can't continue to do what's they've been doing. Now, if Tomlin had been hired following the 2003 season, I don't think many people would've cared if he switched to a 6-1 or 5-2. Tim Lewis was that bad. But Dick LeBeau has done amazing things with the defense in three seasons and I can't imagine the Rooney's would abandon all of that with the new hire.
Also, I read somewhere that some of the Steelers assistants are still under contract and it wouldn't be that easy to get rid of them (without firing them, I guess).
For now, I'll assume Tomlin's the guy and I'm happy about it. In the words of DJ, anybody who can work for Tobias Funke has to be smart.
PS. Consider this the Saints-Colts game thread too.
PPS. Israel, enjoy the game at your mother's, although I'm shocked she's not a devoted HSS reader.
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