Mike Tomlin knows how to win in the NFL because he never suffered a losing season in any of his 19 years as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach.
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he → know → coach
He's also winning as a TV analyst on NBC's Sunday Night Football pregame show.
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He → win → show
And it could be he's winning so much that he's using the latter to return to the former.
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he → win → former
This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners.
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page → contain → partners
If you sign up or place a wager, FOX News may be compensated.
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News → sign → wager
This content was created by a team that works independently from the FOX newsroom.
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that → create → newsroom
Tomlin on Sunday night did something most former-coaches-turned-broadcasters not named Rex Ryan rarely do: He criticized a current coach.
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He → do → coach
Tomlin analyzed the end of the Baltimore Ravens 34-31 victory over the Dallas Cowboys and laid the loss at the feet of the coaching staff, which obviously is led by head coach Brian Schottenheimer.
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which → analyze → Schottenheimer
"The sequence played by the Dallas Cowboys at the end of the game in Rio was somewhat negligent, to be quite honest with you," Tomlin said.
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Tomlin → play → you
Tomlin explained how a game that was tied at 31 with seven seconds remaining in regulation should not have turned into a loss until "strategically, Dallas helped [Baltimore] in that circumstance."
How?
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Dallas → explain → circumstance
The Cowboys' disaster began with the fact their kickoff went into the end zone for a touchback rather than remaining on the field, where precious seconds would have ticked off the clock.
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seconds → begin → clock
"Baltimore gets the ball on the 35-yard-line, and they had this really significant play down the middle of the field to their No. 1 receiver, Zay Flowers," Tomlin said.
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Tomlin → get → receiver
"But let's really analyze it for a minute.
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's → let → minute
Man, the Dallas Cowboys are playing outside leverage man-to-man.
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Cowboys → play → man
They got caught in some one-on-ones, Zay Flowers won, and they put them in position to kick that game-winning field goal.
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they → catch → goal
"
The ultimate decision on what coverage the defense plays and whether to avoid coverage that doesn't make sense, falls on Schottenheimer.
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that → play → Schottenheimer
Following the loss, Cowboys owner Jerry Jones requested (demanded?) an explanation of what exactly his coach was thinking.
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coach → follow → what
Is Jones satisfied with the explanation he got?
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he → get → explanation
"Well, there is no explanation you're satisfied with," Jones said during his regular Tuesday appearance on 105.3 The Fan in the Metroplex.
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Jones → be → Metroplex
Let's be sure that we all understand that.
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we → let → that
"They don't have one that they're satisfied with.
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they → have → that
We made mistakes during that time.
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We → make → time
This is where the possibility that Tomlin highlighting his fellow coach's mistake to millions of people on TV's most popular weekly broadcast makes him look good.
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him → highlight → broadcast
Because being able to explain what should have happened, sends the message that's how he would have handled it as the Cowboys coach.
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he → explain → coach
We are not reporting that Tomlin is focused on putting himself in position to be the next Cowboys coach.
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Tomlin → report → position
But he surely didn't hurt himself with this segment, if that is his intent.
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that → hurt → segment
Tomlin hasn't said he wants to get back into coaching next year.
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he → say → coaching
Then again, he hasn't said he doesn't.
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he → say → ?
But if he does eventually want a coaching comeback, one way to help, is by highlighting that he wouldn't lose a game another coach, who displeased ownership, just lost.
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who → want → ownership
Anyone reading this might doubt a former coach would use his position as a broadcaster to help himself land a job he covets.
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he → read → job
Except, it has happened before.
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it → happen → ?
In 1995, former Cowboys coach Jimmy Johnson would often comment on the Fox pregame show about how talented the Miami Dolphins were and how they should be performing better and winning more.
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they → comment → more
The obvious implication was that then-coach Don Shula should be doing better than the 9-5 record he eventually milked out of his team.
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he → do → team
People in Miami saw through it.
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People → see → it
They understood Johnson, who had coached at the University of Miami and lived in Key West, liked the idea of returning to coaching with the Dolphins.
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who → understand → Dolphins
And it worked.
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it → work → ?
Johnson's work on TV fed a public relations campaign that painted him as an upgrade.
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that → feed → upgrade
Shula was ultimately forced out in January 1996 and Johnson was hired one week later.
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Johnson → force → January
Shula, believing he had been undermined, never forgave Johnson.
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he → believe → Johnson
The question now is whether Tomlin will continue to critique Schottenheimer and his staff, adding to more speculation that he's focused on their job.
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he → continue → job
…and 1 more, not listed.
The Aporia
