In a fan survey complied by Sean Gentile of The Athletic, participants were asked a bevy of questions from all-time favorite Steeler to their confidence in running back James Conner as an every-down back.
The most popular Steeler of all time? Mike Tomlin's approval rating? How much longer should Big Ben play?
Steelers fans sound off in our survey. Here are the results: https://t.co/09rtFIL15W | @seangentille
— The Athletic Pittsburgh (@TheAthleticPGH) April 17, 2020
The question that elicited the most comments were those regarding head coach Mike Tomlin.
When asked how fans would rate the job Tomlin did in 2019, the majority of fans (844/1,078) gave him an eight or above.
397 fans rated him at an eight on his career in Pittsburgh overall, and 67 percent of them are optimistic about his future with the Steelers.
Sure, fans miss Bill “The Chin” Cowher and the emotion he displayed on the sidelines. Tomlin takes a much less animated approach to the game. However, in a 13-year comparison of records, Tomlin has a slight advantage.
In 2008 — Tomlin’s second season — he became the youngest HC to ever win a Super Bowl at age 38. Cowher didn’t win a Super Bowl until his 14th season. The Steelers were AFC Champions in both Tomlin and Cowher’s fourth season (2010 and 1995).
After 13 seasons, Tomlin’s record is 133-74-1; Cowher’s was 130-77-1.
Last year, the Steelers announced that they signed Tomlin to a one-year extension, keeping him under contract through 2021. At that point, Tomlin will have been with the Steelers for 15 seasons, the same amount of years that Cowher was before he retired.
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