Mike Tomlin has been really, really good on NBC this season.
The former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach has been praised for his honesty and his analysis, while covering the league for NBC. Tomlin left the Steelers following the 2025 season, joining the TV ranks.
While Tomlin hasn’t completely closed the door on a return to coaching, he could thrive in the TV world moving forward.
Could he move from the desk to the broadcasting booth?
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During a recent episode of The Bill Simmons Podcast, the founder of The Ringer said that he would like to see Tomlin in the booth on “Sunday Night Football.”
“If you’re NBC, you’ve got to see what he’s like doing a game,” Simmons said. “I think Collinsworth is as good as he’s ever been. I’m not trying to push Collinsworth out. I think you have to just test drive it, or you have to put him in the booth with those guys. Which I think would be awesome. Collinsworth is a good enough broadcaster that if you put Tomlin in there, he’d be able to play off and Tirico would know how to handle it. But I think you have to see it at some point this season.”
Three-man booths can be tough, as you’ll often have people talking over each other, or not getting into a real kind of flow.
However, it could be something worth testing out for NBC, considering how good Tomlin has been on the air.
Collinsworth doesn’t appear to be planning on retiring anytime soon, so Tomlin probably won’t get a serious opportunity to replace him, but maybe the “Sunday Night Football” broadcast will go to a three-man booth.
