Everyone in sports media seems convinced Mike Tomlin is heading to TV

After 19 seasons, Mike Tomlin stepped down as the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers on Tuesday.

The 53-year-old accomplished a lot during his time there, leading the Steelers to 13 playoff appearances, eight division titles, three AFC Championship Games, two Super Bowl appearances, and a title in Super Bowl XLIII. Not to mention, Pittsburgh never had a losing season while he was at the helm.

While some NFL owners might kick the tires to see if Tomlin would want to start fresh with a new team next season, it seems as though the smart money is on him moving into broadcasting in some form. At least, that’s what a lot of people in the sports media seem to think.

ESPN’s Troy Aikman kicked things off even before Tomlin left Pittsburgh, saying towards the end of Monday night’s playoff loss that “There’ll be a lot of networks knocking on his door.”

After the news broke on Tuesday, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter added that his “sense” was that TV was next for Tomlin.

Adam Schefter: “My sense is that [Mike Tomlin] is going to go into television.” 🏈📺🎙️ #NFL pic.twitter.com/92t5zM0gHr

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 13, 2026

“We’ll hear from Mike Tomlin at some point in time, but my sense is that he’s going to go into television. That there’ll be any number of opportunities that await him,” said Schefter during a SportsCenter segment. “Now, he could decide to do TV, which is what Sean Payton did during the year he was out [of coaching]. It keeps people involved in the game without having to work coaches’ hours.”

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand shared the sentiment that Tomlin could go to TV. As Aikman had noted, Marchand said the highly respected coach would have his pick of suitors, but one network is the clubhouse leader.

Fox is considered the favorite, as it has not filled Jimmy Johnson’s seat on Fox’s NFL studio show following Johnson’s retirement. “Fox NFL Sunday,” featuring Michael Strahan, Terry Bradshaw, Howie Long and Rob Gronkowski, has a top-line resume requirement:

Must be a Hall of Famer or future Hall of Famer.

While we are not here to argue if Tomlin belongs in Canton or not, he qualifies for what Fox seeks, and the network would have interest, according to sources.

Marchand also noted that both NBC and ESPN could consider adding Tomlin to their rosters in time for their upcoming Super Bowl presentations (NBC next month, ESPN next year).

NBC could try to add him for Super Bowl, too

Fred Warner is a possibility for Bowl, too. NBC had him in this season on FINA https://t.co/JJUysWUR3s

— Andrew Marchand (@AndrewMarchand) January 13, 2026

Pundits and media members have been singing Tomlin’s praises for years as a potential can’t-miss TV presence. ESPN’s Michael Wilbon took it one step further on Tuesday, saying that he has the potential to be the next John Madden.

Michael Wilbon: Mike Tomlin can reset … football as a form of entertainment on television in a way that no one has since John Madden.pic.twitter.com/Am6hvqjCh1

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 13, 2026

“I know he makes a lot of money. He’s making whatever in the teens of millions of dollars, somewhere between 13, 16 million. He can make more than that in TV. That’s where I expect him to go,” said Wilbon. “I told you weeks ago, Mike Tomlin can reset… football as a form of entertainment on television in a way that no one has since John Madden. And that may be new ways we don’t know about. It may be one of the existing ways with an existing network or platform. I don’t know. I’m not a television executive. But Mike Tomlin, who you have loved to hear talk and talk to for 20 years, you know Mike Tomlin would be great at that.”

The only issue with Tomlin moving into television is that it feels like expectations are through the roof for him to be an instant success. But we are talking about a guy who won a Super Bowl in his second year as a head coach, so it’s not as though that’s out of the question for him.