PITTSBURGH -- Bill Cowher was a Hall of Fame coach.
Mike Tomlin will be a Hall of Famer soon after he retires.
Pittsburgh has been lucky with terrific football coaches. The Steelers are 3 for 3 with Hall of Fame-caliber men since Chuck Noll was hired before the 1969 season. Think about that for a second. Three greats in 53 consecutive seasons.
Noll was the best of the bunch. There is no argument there. His four Super Bowl wins are the ultimate proof. Only Bill Belichick with six has won more.
But which of the other two will be remembered as being better?
Cowher or Tomlin?
I find the topic fascinating, especially after watching the two do revealing interviews recently on Ben Roethlisberger's "Footbahlin" podcast.
Cowher's resume is complete. He won 149 regular-season games in 15 seasons. He had a losing record in three seasons and missed the playoffs five times. He had a 12-9 postseason record, including 2-4 in AFC championship games. He led the Steelers to two Super Bowls, winning the second in 2005 against Seattle.
Tomlin, a former Arkansas State University assistant coach, still is working on his resume. He has won 163 regular-season games in 16 seasons. He hasn't had a losing season and missed the playoffs six times. He is 8-9 in the postseason, including 2-1 in AFC championship games. He has led the Steelers to two Super Bowls, winning the first in 2008 against Arizona.
Strong resumes, right?
Cowher took the Steelers' job in 1992, inheriting a team from Noll that had missed the playoffs in six of the previous seven seasons. He did have an outstanding running back in Barry Foster, the former Arkansas Razorback who set the franchise record in Cowher's first season by rushing for 1,690 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also had a defense led by Rod Woodson, Greg Lloyd and Carnell Lake.
But, as Cowher told Roethlisberger on the podcast, he didn't have a big-time quarterback until Roethlisberger came along as the Steelers' No. 1 pick in the 2004 draft:
"The most wins I had was with Kordell Stewart. ... We won more games than anyone in the 15 years I was in Pittsburgh. More than anybody in the league.
"I only had [Roethlisberger] for three years. Two of those years, we went to the [AFC] championship game and won a championship the other one. I said, 'If Ben doesn't get in a [motorcycle] accident [before the 2006] season, I'm not so sure we don't go back-to-back.' "
I hear people often say, "The only reason Tomlin won is because he inherited Cowher's players." There is some truth to the fact Cowher left him with talent. Notably, Tomlin inherited Roethlisberger. He also had, among others, Willie Parker, Hines Ward, Santonio Holmes and a defense that included Troy Polamalu, James Farrior, James Harrison, Casey Hampton and Aaron Smith in his first season.
The Steelers won the Super Bowl in 2008 -- Tomlin's second season -- and lost to Green Bay in the Super Bowl after the 2010 season. But Tomlin has contributed to the "Cowher's players" narrative by struggling to win postseason games in recent years. He is 3-7 since that Super Bowl loss, including 0-3 in the past six seasons.
I realize that is a blight on Tomlin's credentials.
A big one.
But I also know Tomlin didn't step into a perfect situation. He had to deal with future Hall of Famer Alan Faneca's contract unpleasantness in his first season. Faneca was so unhappy he didn't get a new deal that he refused to be a team captain and moved on to the New York Jets after that 2007 season.
Tomlin also had to navigate Roethlisberger's four-game suspension at the start of the 2010 season. The Steelers made it to the Super Bowl that season before losing to Green Bay.
Cowher had a big advantage over Tomlin in that he coached before the social media era. I don't think the great Noll would be so successful in today's game. It is harder than ever to coach in any sport because of the egos of the star players. Many put their brand and individual agendas ahead of the team.
Antonio Brown is just one example.
Tomlin deserves at least some blame for creating a monster in Brown. He often looked the other way at Brown's abhorrent, me-first behavior.
Doesn't Tomlin deserve a little credit for getting the most out of Brown before Brown destroyed his own career? Brown had six tremendous consecutive seasons for the Steelers, maybe the six best any receiver ever had in a row.
Tomlin has a really strong feel and temperament for handling today's players. I'm not sure anyone in today's NFL is better at it.
Bottom line?
I'm giving Tomlin the slightest edge over Cowher.
I believe Tomlin will prove it by winning a lot more games.
Maybe even another Super Bowl.