A Fox Sports survey revealed that this year's draft prospects want to play for Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin the most among head coaches in the NFL. Tomlin's ability to relate to players and earn their respect has been a mainstay for him throughout his coaching career.
"We thought this one would be close, but we didn't realize it would be quite this close. Heading into the final two prospects, there was a three-way tie. The Steelers' Mike Tomlin pulled out the close win, getting nine votes to edge out the Lions' Dan Campbell and the Chiefs ' Andy Reid with eight each," Fox Sports writes of the 40 players that they surveyed.
"Three coaches got two votes each: the Eagles' Nick Sirianni, the Dolphins' Mike McDaniel and the Raiders ' Pete Carroll. Four others got a single vote: the Rams ' Sean McVay, the Falcons' Raheem Morris, the Vikings' Kevin O'Connell and the Texans' DeMeco Ryans ."
Tomlin received an A from Steelers players in the latest NFLPA report card , which was released on Wednesday. Tomlin ranked seventh in the NFL in the coaching category on the report card.
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin during a game against the Cleveland Browns on Dec. 8, 2024 — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Speaking with Sportskeeda in an exclusive interview , UCLA edge rusher Oluwafemi Oladejo confirmed he spoke with Tomlin for a bit at the Senior Bowl , saying he asked Tomlin a question that led to a longer conversation.
"Yeah, I saw some stuff on the internet about that. Mike Tomlin is a great dude he was on the field during our practices," Oladejo told Sportskeeda. "I'm a pretty extroverted guy, I communicate a lot, so just said what's to up him, I asked him a few questions about football.
"The first question I asked him was like, who's the greatest football player you've coached before. It just kind of led to a long conversation. And I see people noticed that, but he's a great coach, and a great guy."
While other NFL head coaches are in attendance at the Senior Bowl, Tomlin likes to gets an up-close perspective on players. Building a personal relationship is something that he really values.
The Steelers haven't won a playoff game in eight years, which is certainly a blemish on Tomlin's coaching resume. That's something that he needs to fix.
While Tomlin has his flaws, one thing is clear, players love and want to play for him. That can't be disputed.
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