The 2020 odds for Coach of the year at out, and the list is pretty interesting. https://www.sportsbettingdime.com/nfl/coach-year-odds/ Of course, we immediately scanned to see where Steelers coach Mike Tomlin fell on this list. It turns out he ranked around the middle of the pack at +2500 to win the award. Bill Belichick is the favorite, followed by Kyle Shanahan, Mike Vrabel, Bruce Arians, Kliff Kingsbury rounding out the top five.
We are of the opinion that the 2020 season is a perfect storm of events for Mike Tomlin to win Coach of the year. Here’s a list of factors to back up our argument:
Steelers who?
No one in the media is talking about the Pittsburgh Steelers as a viable team to come out of the AFC. All the talking heads are smitten with the Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens. Mainly due to the the injury to Ben Roethlisberger, the Steelers missed the palyoffs in 2019. Missing the playoffs for the second straight year has caused the team to fall out of the NFL consciousness. What all that means is that if the Tomlin can get the team back on its winning ways, it will be perceived as a surprise by the national media. Surprise winners make for great Coach of the Year candidates. In short, the “bad season” the Steelers had last year actually helps Mike Tomlin’s cause for this award.
Big Ben
The injury to Ben Roehtlisberger in week two last season essentially sunk the teams chances of making the playoffs in 2019. There could be an arguement made that Tomlin should have won Coach of the Year last season for just getting this team to .500. Especially considering how bad the quarterback play was once Big Ben went down. Add a healthy Ben Roethlisberger to this exceptional defense and you have all the makings of a deep playoff run. With that in mind, a 12-4 record does not seem out of the questoin for 2020 provided the Steelers remain relatively healthy. A four or five game swing in wins is sure to get Mike Tomlin a good number of votes for Coach of the Year.
News flash: Tomlin is actually a good coach
Mike Tomlin has his share of detractors. They would point to the fact that despite having immense talent over the last few seasons, the team has underachieved. Even here at Steelers Sanctuary we have questioned his abilities at times. Mike Tomlin won’t survive a loss to the Raiders
The fact remains however that Mike Tomlin is a top five coach in this league at the very minimum. There only a select few coaches that can boast the kind of success that he has accomplished. Never having had a losing season, two Super Bowl appearances, and several playoff trips make Mike Tomlin an elite NFL coach. With his abilities, and a return of a healthy team, he is primed for another winning season. That would make thirteen straight for the Steelers coach, quite an accomplishment.
The Verdict:
When you scan through the list of favorites for Coach of the Year, one can make a pretty good argument against each one. Bill Belichick for instance, is the favorite for this award. Does anyone really think the New England Patriots are going to have any sucsess at all with Jarrett Stidham as their quarterback? How about Kyle Shanahan? Do we really think he can improve over the expectations of that team?
At +2500 Mike Tomlin is a bargain if you are into this type of thing. You can’t get any better odds on a coach who actually has a legitimate shot at winning this award. So if you have some stimulus money hanging around and want to invest it, plunk some money down on Mike Tomlin as Coach of the Year. You wont regret it.