Not many NFL franchises can boast having a head coach who has won 100 plus games for them. After last season, the Pittsburgh Steelers can now boast that they have three. What could be more impressive than having three coaches that have won that many games? How about three head coaches in a row that have done so.
Since 1970, the Steelers have had only three head coaches. That’s the fewest of any franchise by far. Chuck Noll was hired in 1969. Bill Cowher replaced Noll in 1992, and Mike Tomlin replaced Bill Cowher in 2007. From 1969-1991, Noll won 193 regular season games. Cowher won 149 games from 1992-2006. And in his current tenure with the Steelers, Tomlin already has 103 wins.
This coaching threesome already achieved another obscure mark in 2008 when the Steelers won Super Bowl XLIII. They became the second NFL franchise, the first in the AFC, with three consecutive head coaches winning a Super Bowl. They’re also the first team in league history to have three head coaches win 50 home games. The Steelers also lead the NFL in coaching wins since 1970. Three head coaches since 1970. That’s an average length of 15.4 years that each of them coached.
Even in Death, Chuck Noll is Still a Part of Making NFL History
Stability The Key To Success
15.4 years per coach, think about that for a minute. Over the same period of time, the Cleveland Browns have had 18 head coaches. That’s about one head coach every two and a half years. In the last 46 years, Noll, Cowher, and Tomlin have combined for 445 regular season wins. The 17 Cleveland Browns head coaches have combined for 266.
In another comparison, let’s use the NFL’s second choice to be “America’s Team. The Dallas Cowboys, since 1969, have had eight coaches, or one head coach just under every six years. Those eight Cowboys coaches combined for 402 wins. Overall, the Steelers three head coaches have 179 more wins than the Browns 17 head coaches. Compared to the Cowboys, Noll, Cowher, and Tomlin top their eight head coaches by 43 wins.
For the Steelers, the formula used to hire Noll, Cowher, and Tomlin was the same. Chose a young, relatively obscure defensive assistant with a clear vision on how to build a team through the draft. While their coaching styles have all been different, they had one thing in common, they preach a team first philosophy.
The Steeler Way Was Created By Noll
How much different might things have been if the Steelers first candidate in 1969, Joe Paterno, had taken the job? No doubt the Steelers would have improved by comparison to where they had been. It’s doubtful that they would have become a dynasty. It was definitely a blessing in disguise when Paterno said no, because Noll’s vision is what the Steelers needed. It was his vision that became the Steeler way. Noll’s vision has become the standard which has stood the test of time.
When Tomlin reached 100 regular season wins for the Steelers, it was an unprecedented achievement. Becoming a third consecutive head coach to reach that milestone may never happen again. Anything is possible though. However, the chances of another franchise having three consecutive coaches win 100 are slim and none. More like somewhere between the Cleveland Browns winning a Super Bowl and Brock Osweiler being the MVP.
Chuck Noll’s Legacy
Hopefully, when Tomlin gets his 149th career win with the Steelers, and becomes the third straight coach to reach that mark, him and the franchise get the credit they deserve. It may not get them a trophy, or any other kind of award, but it proves greatness. It proves that for the last 47 years, no other franchise has done it better in the front office, on the field, and along the sidelines.
These achievements by the Steelers and their coaching staffs didn’t happen by accident. It’s a result of franchise stability from the top down, and respect for the process. Chuck Noll started changing the culture in Pittsburgh from the moment he arrived. Maintaining his philosophy through the present is why the Steelers have remained successful. It’s the reason that him, Bill Cowher, and Mike Tomlin have collectively accomplished what has never been done before. That achievement is part of Chuck Noll’s continuing legacy.
