Life would be a lot better if we could humanize one another more easily, and Mike Tomlin revealing himself as a longtime top-secret Minecraft aficionado is a step in the right direction.
The former coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers and new NBC analyst wouldn’t strike anyone as a gamer. But in an interview with Today anchor Craig Melvin ahead of the launch of the 2026 NFL campaign, Tomlin admitted that he is in fact not just a fan of the game, but a dedicated one at that.
Tomlin said he started playing Minecraft to connect with his children and give them something to do together. But as the games went on, the coach kept playing. Now he says he’s been building the same city for 12 years and is considering sharing it with the public.
Mike Tomlin revealed to @craigmelvin that he plays Minecraft and has been working on the same city for 12 years — and he’s thinking about sharing it with everyone.
This might be the most unexpected Mike Tomlin fact ever. 🤯
(via ‘Today Show’) pic.twitter.com/6ox6QE55Lo
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) September 8, 2026
“I’m a big Minecrafter,” Tomlin said, much to Melvin’s amazement. “I started playing Minecraft, man, when my kids were young. I have a Minecraft city on creative, man, that I’ve been working on for like 12 years.”
Even though Tomlin’s kids have grown up, their dad still has his city and is being encouraged to make it public.
“When they come home, they’re like, ‘Hey, Dad, put your city up; let me see what’s up.’ My kids, they’ve taken it from PS3 to PS4 to PS5. They’re into preserving it because they know I don’t have the technical knowledge. But we’ve been talking recently about sharing it with the world. My oldest son is like, ‘Dad, you’ve got to share this with the world. People need to see this city that you’ve been working on for 12 years,” he added.
Craig Melvin said it would break the internet, and he’s probably right.
Mike Tomlin can’t just drop that bombshell of a scoop and not follow through with opening up the doors to his Minecraft city, can he? Of course, some Steelers fans might wonder how many hours Tomlin dedicated to Minecraft while his team struggled to break through in the postseason. But let a guy live! It should encourage coaches and players to have hobbies and a sense of normalcy outside of football.
Forget returning to coaching or his new sports media career; we just want to know when he is going to start his own Twitch channel.
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