Mike Tomlin served as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers for 19 seasons before stepping down at the conclusion of their 2025-26 campaign. With the NFL’s longest tenured bench boss out of the Steel City, who will assume the role next?
Steelers Legend Ryan Clark Names Marcus Freeman as ‘Perfect Pick’ to Replace Mike Tomlin
One of Tomlin’s former players, someone with a close bond to the 53-year-old, believes he knows the perfect candidate for the Steelers’ next head coach. NFL veteran safety Ryan Clark played eight of his 13 professional seasons with the Steelers, ranging from 2006 to 2013.
The 2009 Super Bowl champion has maintained a close relationship with coach Tomlin, appearing at several team camps and practices and showing constant love for the Steelers.
Clark joined his former AFC North rival Chad (Ochocinco) Johnson on the “Inside the NFL On X” podcast, where the two weigh the Steelers’ options. Johnson begins by jokingly asking Clark who, other than himself, could be a good fit as the Steelers’ next leader.
“I think Marcus Freeman would be the perfect pick to be the Pittsburgh Steelers’ next head coach,” said Clark. “He’s young, he’s smart, he’s experienced, he’s an amazing leader. From an X’s and O’s standpoint, I know this more than anybody: the fakes on special teams, those decisions, those designs, that’s Marcus Freeman.”
Clark continued, “That’s Marcus Freeman’s imprint on who Notre Dame is. When the man at the top was a former defensive coordinator, pours into special teams like that, I think that tells you what sort of man he is, but what sort of coach he is that he’ll do the little things as well.”
Under a full year of Freeman’s tenure, the Fighting Irish have earned a Bowl appearance in each season. Notre Dame also reached the National Championship in 2025, narrowly falling to Ohio State.
As Clark stated, Freeman fits the profile for the typical Steelers head coach: at 40 years old, he would be one of the youngest coaches in the NFL, he is defensive-minded, and has been referred to several times as a players’ coach, as demonstrated in his message to the Fighting Irish after missing out on the 2025 CFB playoffs.
The Steelers continue to weigh their options with several other names remaining as potential head coaching candidates. These include: Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator (DC) Chris Shula, Rams pass game coordinator Nathan Scheelhasse, Minnesota Vikings DC Brian Flores, and the Steelers’ native Mike McCarthy.
Freeman has yet to officially interview for an NFL job and remains steadfast that, at this moment, he is the head coach of Notre Dame.
