A week before the Steelers and coach Mike Tomlin secured a key win in Baltimore, Tomlin’s team suffered an embarrassing home loss to the Bills.
The 26-7 defeat prompted audible chants of “Fire Tomlin!,” and boos during the team’s iconic Renegade moment.
During Tomlin’s traditional Tuesday in-season press conference, he was asked whether he believed last week that he was on the hot seat.
“Man, I’ve been in the hot seat for 19 years,” Tomlin said. “I always feel like I got something to prove. Not necessarily to anyone in particular, but that’s just the spirit in which I go about what I do professionally.”
Still, last week was different. It also included former players, including Ben Roethlisberger and James Harrison, openly expressing a belief that it’s time for a change.
The fans who were disgruntled in Week 13 will be back for Week 15, against the Dolphins. What does Tomlin expect from them?
“I expect them to show up, man,” Tomlin said. “It’s Monday Night Football in Acrisure [Stadium]. It’s gonna be a big game.”
It will be that. The Steelers are 7-6, and the Dolphins are surprisingly 6-7. And if things don’t go well for the Steelers in a game they’re favored to win by only three points, the chants and the boos could return — for a national TV audience to hear.
