December 15, 2025 • 12 mins
Steelers Digest Editor, Bob Labriola sits down with Head Coach Mike Tomlin ahead of the Steelers Week 15 matchup against the Miami Dolphins
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
He's the Mike Tomlin Gen Day Podcast with Steelers Digest
editor Bob Labriola. Okay, coach, it seems like the game
in Baltimore was a long time ago, but in your
review of it last Tuesday, you said, I thought our
third down play, particularly at the early stages of the game,
sent a message and quelled the environment and allowed us
to find our footing in play Brandon Echoles, I thought
(00:23):
was central to that. What put Echos on your radar
during the last offseason when you signed him as an
unrestricted free agent? And how has his role evolved since
coming here?
Speaker 2 (00:33):
You know, it really started a year ago when he
was playing for the Jets and we played those guys.
He was just a versatile and capable defender and teamer.
He played third corner for those guys. He played outside
and inside. He was a gunner on punt, an anti
gunner on punt return. We just thought he was the
type of guy that you want in a competitive environment.
(00:57):
He's capable of doing a lot of things, and it's
proven to be true.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
He's been a.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Capable outside guy, he's been a capable nickel. He's been
a core member of our special teams units, on the
perimeter doing cornerback like things. More than anything, He's a
football player first and he displays that with his versatility. Certainly,
he's playing a lot of nickel for us now because
as we've transitioned and moved Jalen to safety and some
other things, that have been several dominoes that have fallen.
(01:24):
But through it all, he's been above the line and
everything we've asked him to do, and he's shown that
versatility that really attracted us to him as far back
as last year when we were getting ready to play
when he was a member of the Jets.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Something else that happened in Baltimore was that DK Metcalf
lined up as a gunner on a pun team after
some in game injuries. When CBS showed it on the telecast,
DK more than held his own. Was he recruited for
that job on Sunday? Or did he volunteer?
Speaker 2 (01:51):
He's a volunteer and as was Jalen Warren in the
kickoff return game. The roads is getting narrow, and it's
not about what you capable of do, It's about what
you're willing to do. And those are two really good
examples of it. I'm appreciative of their efforts and their talents,
but it's certainly required.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
When asked about the officiating in Baltimore, you said there
are going to be controversial calls in big games. I
think I always focus my energy on making enough plays
to minimize that in terms of determining the outcome of
the game. That's why you won't hear me calling New
York post game for expect excuse me for explanations and
things of that nature. Is that because you want to
(02:30):
maintain a good working relationship with officials, or because you
want that stance to serve as an example to your
team about not making excuses.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
I certainly wanted to serve as an example to my
team about not making excuses, and more importantly, moving on.
Calls to New York and subsequent conversations are not going
to change the outcome of the judgment or the outcome
of the game. And certainly I've been on both sides
of discussion over the years, and sometimes you need a
little experience to have that perspective. But in this business, man,
(03:02):
it is week to week, and by the time you
get into the next week, you better be moving on
because if not, then your guys might reflect that as well,
and I just own that as a leader.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
A lot of statistics get thrown around at this stage
of an NFL season, and i'd like to get your
opinion on three of those offensive plays per game, total
net yards per game, average time of possession. In each
of those categories, the team is operating at a deficit.
Is that important or do you view that it's just
numbers on a sheet of paper.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
I certainly view it as important. Just because we're on
the wrong side of it. I'm not going to devalue it.
Good defense is spent a lot of time on the sideline.
It's the defense's responsibility. Is also the offenses responsibility if
you want to wage the war of attrition, and really
oftentimes rushing and rush defense has a lot to do
(03:54):
with that. And so certainly we haven't run the ball
recently as well as we like, and we certainly hadn't
stopped to run as well we'd like, And that's why
those numbers are what they are. But they're all interrelated,
they're not isolated, and it's usually multiple variables and we're
kind of discussing them as we sit here. It's a
component of our profile that we got to get rectified
(04:16):
as we continue to do what's required to win and
push into this tournament.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
A couple of weeks ago, we talked about football justice
and how it pertained to James Pierre. Another guy who
seems to fall into that category is Ben Scaronic. He
was waived by the Texans in twenty twenty four, which
was when you signed him to the practice squad. What
was the initial interest in him and how has he
developed since then.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
He was a football player, first in a wide receiver. Second,
his appetite and talent regarding special teams, his ability to tackle,
his toughness was really attractive. He's kind of very similar
to Darius Hayward Bay when we picked him up at
that point in his career. He embraced that component of
(05:01):
the game, and we had a great experience with Darius.
I can't even remember how many years he played here,
but we had a really good experience with him. Ben
reminds me of that man. He just embraces the grit
component of the game. He's certainly a top notch teamer.
He's our leading tackler, and he's Pro Bowl caliber in
(05:22):
that area, if there's a such thing anymore. As the
Pro Bowl, and obviously he's capable and versatile as a
wide out. By that, I mean he knows all the positions.
He's willing to do the gritty things when we get
in three wide receiver sets. He can carry the run game,
fight and be at the point of attack. A not
a lot of white House and capable of doing that.
(05:42):
But that's aligned with the will component of his profile,
and certainly he's been an asset to us.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
It's now mid December, which means the road is getting
narrow in the NFL. Are you seeing a different Aaron
Rodgers as a result of that? You know?
Speaker 2 (05:56):
I don't know that I'm seeing a different erin in
terms of his approach. Do think that I'm seeing a
different earing in terms of he's making sure that the
young guys understand what's at stake. He's always done a
really good job of educating and communicating regarding young players.
But I think the veteran player has a special role
(06:16):
this time of year to explain to those the gravity
of what is transpiring, what's required, and certainly what's required
is urgency, day to day, good practices, clean practices, and
I certainly feel him leading the charge in that regard.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Is it fair to say that these kinds of games,
these kinds of situations are why you had interest in
bringing him here and why he had interest in being here.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
It's no doubt what he has you can't buy. He's
got high level experience. He's built for these things. And
beyond that, man, he's got to have it. He's got
a thirst for these moments and and and I'd imagine
that's why he was interested. That's why he quote unquote
took less to be here. He wanted to be a
(07:04):
part of a good team that was positioned like this
and so that he could be a component of this
tournament and so forth. And so it's been great for
both parties, and certainly from my perspective, I'm glad to
have them.
Speaker 1 (07:16):
Miami quarterback to a tug of Iloa, is left handed.
Is there anything about that the spin on the football
that might impact the defense. You know, we talked earlier
about Corliss Weightman's punting and how him being left footed
might have an impact on the return guys catching the ball.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
It certainly is an impact on the defense. You know,
most offenses are right handed. You see left handed components
of offensive play when you got a left handed quarterback,
for example, many of their boots or misdirection passes go
to the defense's right. The offense is left. Most edge
players outside linebackers, etc. That play on the defenses right
(07:57):
don't see a lot of that, And so there's some
things that are a little bit different on a week
like this, and I've been really thoughtful about educating our guys.
We played them in Miami in twenty two and it
took us a while to warm up to it, to
be quite honest with you, they had some success early
in the game. We settled down. I think we shut
him out. In the second half, we came up short.
(08:18):
But it's kind of a reflection of the adaptation that
has to happen when you're looking at a left handed
quarterback and a left handed offense. It's very difficult to duplicate.
We certainly benefit from it in the special teams game
with the left footed punter. It'll be a period of adjustments.
We better warm up quick in it because it's just
no time to waste on Monday night football.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
Tonight's challenge at running back is the Vaughan Auchin. What
are his strengths and who would you compare them to
as far as the backs you've faced already this season.
Speaker 2 (08:48):
You know, first of all, he was a two sport
athlete at A and M. He ran track as well,
and I think that speaks to what his distinguishing trade is.
He's awesome on the perimeter, but you don't want to
disrespect his contact balance and power for a smaller guy.
He packs a punch for a smaller guy. He plays
(09:09):
bigger than his measurables. He's similar to Cook in Buffalo
in a lot of ways in his elusiveness and his
ability to dominate on the perimeter.
Speaker 1 (09:20):
When the regular season opened, the top two left tackles
listed on the flip card for the game against the
Jets were Broderick Jones and Calvin Anderson. Today, both of
them are an injured reserve, and the top two left
tackles on your current depth chart are Andres Pete, who
wasn't signed until after training camp opened and started this
week in the concussion protocol, and Dylan Cook, who was
(09:43):
added to the fifty three roster just on Wednesday. Every
NFL season tests the depth of every team's roster, But
is there any way to prepare for this kind of
a situation.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
It certainly is. And you know, I use a couple
quote unquote tomalinism to wet our appetite for it. One
man's misfortune is another man's opportunity. I always want those
that are waiting in the ranks to understand that it's
not if it's win in this business. From that perspective,
and the other one is the standard is the standard.
(10:16):
There's a fine line between being a backup and practice
squad player and a pro bowler at this level in
terms of the totality of the football world, and so
never discount the talents of those that are waiting in
the ranks. I challenge them to be ready and to
play and to play well. I'm not going to be
surprised when they do. But it's also a coach and
a strategy responsibility. We're not going to send Dylan out
(10:38):
there and hope for the best. It's our responsibility to
ensure schematically that we give him an opportunity to be successful,
and it's his responsibility to play well.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
All week, the National Weather Service was calling for tonight's
temperatures to be in the low twenties and dropping through
the night.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
How do you prepare for that? Leading up to the game,
you know, because we're pissed group. I don't know that
we have to. It's just, you know, live where we work.
You know, we had a great outside practice on Saturday
at actasure in the environment we live here day to day.
I know over the last nineteen years, I've certainly developed
(11:18):
a thick skin relative to weather conditions. I did similar
things relative to the heat when I lived in Tampa
for five years. And so the weather conditions certainly are
going to be significant, but probably less significant for us
and those that have been here than the Miami Dolphins
and those that haven't.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
You mentioned your time in Tampa. When you were there,
did you find that the kind of weather, this kind
of December weather, was more of an adjustment for the
team from a warm weather climate.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
I'll tell you this, Okay. When I was in Tampa,
we were in the Black and Blue Division, and we
went in a historic period of time without winning the
game in thirty two degrees or and so that became
a storyline whenever we played in Green Bay late in
the year, whenever we had to go to Philadelphia in
(12:07):
the playoffs, etc. Thankfully, when we won the World Championship
in two thousand and two, we were able to shake
that monkey off our back in the NFC Championship in
Philadelphia at the VET and so certainly being a component
of a group like that and understanding that it is
certainly a period of adjustment and things to deal with,
(12:28):
and we lived it, and so I respect it.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
That's the Mike Tomlin Game Day Podcast. Subscribe and download
new episodes every week and check out all of the
other shows we have to offer on the Steelers Podcast
network that's available on the Steelers mobile app, the iHeartRadio app,
or wherever you get your podcasts.
He's the Mike Tomlin Gen Day Podcast with Steelers Digest
editor Bob Labriola. Okay, coach, it seems like the game
in Baltimore was a long time ago, but in your
review of it last Tuesday, you said, I thought our
third down play, particularly at the early stages of the game,
sent a message and quelled the environment and allowed us
to find our footing in play Brandon Echoles, I thought
(00:23):
was central to that. What put Echos on your radar
during the last offseason when you signed him as an
unrestricted free agent? And how has his role evolved since
coming here?
Speaker 2 (00:33):
You know, it really started a year ago when he
was playing for the Jets and we played those guys.
He was just a versatile and capable defender and teamer.
He played third corner for those guys. He played outside
and inside. He was a gunner on punt, an anti
gunner on punt return. We just thought he was the
type of guy that you want in a competitive environment.
(00:57):
He's capable of doing a lot of things, and it's
proven to be true.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
He's been a.
Speaker 2 (01:01):
Capable outside guy, he's been a capable nickel. He's been
a core member of our special teams units, on the
perimeter doing cornerback like things. More than anything, He's a
football player first and he displays that with his versatility. Certainly,
he's playing a lot of nickel for us now because
as we've transitioned and moved Jalen to safety and some
other things, that have been several dominoes that have fallen.
(01:24):
But through it all, he's been above the line and
everything we've asked him to do, and he's shown that
versatility that really attracted us to him as far back
as last year when we were getting ready to play
when he was a member of the Jets.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Something else that happened in Baltimore was that DK Metcalf
lined up as a gunner on a pun team after
some in game injuries. When CBS showed it on the telecast,
DK more than held his own. Was he recruited for
that job on Sunday? Or did he volunteer?
Speaker 2 (01:51):
He's a volunteer and as was Jalen Warren in the
kickoff return game. The roads is getting narrow, and it's
not about what you capable of do, It's about what
you're willing to do. And those are two really good
examples of it. I'm appreciative of their efforts and their talents,
but it's certainly required.
Speaker 1 (02:09):
When asked about the officiating in Baltimore, you said there
are going to be controversial calls in big games. I
think I always focus my energy on making enough plays
to minimize that in terms of determining the outcome of
the game. That's why you won't hear me calling New
York post game for expect excuse me for explanations and
things of that nature. Is that because you want to
(02:30):
maintain a good working relationship with officials, or because you
want that stance to serve as an example to your
team about not making excuses.
Speaker 2 (02:39):
I certainly wanted to serve as an example to my
team about not making excuses, and more importantly, moving on.
Calls to New York and subsequent conversations are not going
to change the outcome of the judgment or the outcome
of the game. And certainly I've been on both sides
of discussion over the years, and sometimes you need a
little experience to have that perspective. But in this business, man,
(03:02):
it is week to week, and by the time you
get into the next week, you better be moving on
because if not, then your guys might reflect that as well,
and I just own that as a leader.
Speaker 1 (03:12):
A lot of statistics get thrown around at this stage
of an NFL season, and i'd like to get your
opinion on three of those offensive plays per game, total
net yards per game, average time of possession. In each
of those categories, the team is operating at a deficit.
Is that important or do you view that it's just
numbers on a sheet of paper.
Speaker 2 (03:34):
I certainly view it as important. Just because we're on
the wrong side of it. I'm not going to devalue it.
Good defense is spent a lot of time on the sideline.
It's the defense's responsibility. Is also the offenses responsibility if
you want to wage the war of attrition, and really
oftentimes rushing and rush defense has a lot to do
(03:54):
with that. And so certainly we haven't run the ball
recently as well as we like, and we certainly hadn't
stopped to run as well we'd like, And that's why
those numbers are what they are. But they're all interrelated,
they're not isolated, and it's usually multiple variables and we're
kind of discussing them as we sit here. It's a
component of our profile that we got to get rectified
(04:16):
as we continue to do what's required to win and
push into this tournament.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
A couple of weeks ago, we talked about football justice
and how it pertained to James Pierre. Another guy who
seems to fall into that category is Ben Scaronic. He
was waived by the Texans in twenty twenty four, which
was when you signed him to the practice squad. What
was the initial interest in him and how has he
developed since then.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
He was a football player, first in a wide receiver. Second,
his appetite and talent regarding special teams, his ability to tackle,
his toughness was really attractive. He's kind of very similar
to Darius Hayward Bay when we picked him up at
that point in his career. He embraced that component of
(05:01):
the game, and we had a great experience with Darius.
I can't even remember how many years he played here,
but we had a really good experience with him. Ben
reminds me of that man. He just embraces the grit
component of the game. He's certainly a top notch teamer.
He's our leading tackler, and he's Pro Bowl caliber in
(05:22):
that area, if there's a such thing anymore. As the
Pro Bowl, and obviously he's capable and versatile as a
wide out. By that, I mean he knows all the positions.
He's willing to do the gritty things when we get
in three wide receiver sets. He can carry the run game,
fight and be at the point of attack. A not
a lot of white House and capable of doing that.
(05:42):
But that's aligned with the will component of his profile,
and certainly he's been an asset to us.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
It's now mid December, which means the road is getting
narrow in the NFL. Are you seeing a different Aaron
Rodgers as a result of that? You know?
Speaker 2 (05:56):
I don't know that I'm seeing a different erin in
terms of his approach. Do think that I'm seeing a
different earing in terms of he's making sure that the
young guys understand what's at stake. He's always done a
really good job of educating and communicating regarding young players.
But I think the veteran player has a special role
(06:16):
this time of year to explain to those the gravity
of what is transpiring, what's required, and certainly what's required
is urgency, day to day, good practices, clean practices, and
I certainly feel him leading the charge in that regard.
Speaker 1 (06:32):
Is it fair to say that these kinds of games,
these kinds of situations are why you had interest in
bringing him here and why he had interest in being here.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
It's no doubt what he has you can't buy. He's
got high level experience. He's built for these things. And
beyond that, man, he's got to have it. He's got
a thirst for these moments and and and I'd imagine
that's why he was interested. That's why he quote unquote
took less to be here. He wanted to be a
(07:04):
part of a good team that was positioned like this
and so that he could be a component of this
tournament and so forth. And so it's been great for
both parties, and certainly from my perspective, I'm glad to
have them.
Speaker 1 (07:16):
Miami quarterback to a tug of Iloa, is left handed.
Is there anything about that the spin on the football
that might impact the defense. You know, we talked earlier
about Corliss Weightman's punting and how him being left footed
might have an impact on the return guys catching the ball.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
It certainly is an impact on the defense. You know,
most offenses are right handed. You see left handed components
of offensive play when you got a left handed quarterback,
for example, many of their boots or misdirection passes go
to the defense's right. The offense is left. Most edge
players outside linebackers, etc. That play on the defenses right
(07:57):
don't see a lot of that, And so there's some
things that are a little bit different on a week
like this, and I've been really thoughtful about educating our guys.
We played them in Miami in twenty two and it
took us a while to warm up to it, to
be quite honest with you, they had some success early
in the game. We settled down. I think we shut
him out. In the second half, we came up short.
(08:18):
But it's kind of a reflection of the adaptation that
has to happen when you're looking at a left handed
quarterback and a left handed offense. It's very difficult to duplicate.
We certainly benefit from it in the special teams game
with the left footed punter. It'll be a period of adjustments.
We better warm up quick in it because it's just
no time to waste on Monday night football.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
Tonight's challenge at running back is the Vaughan Auchin. What
are his strengths and who would you compare them to
as far as the backs you've faced already this season.
Speaker 2 (08:48):
You know, first of all, he was a two sport
athlete at A and M. He ran track as well,
and I think that speaks to what his distinguishing trade is.
He's awesome on the perimeter, but you don't want to
disrespect his contact balance and power for a smaller guy.
He packs a punch for a smaller guy. He plays
(09:09):
bigger than his measurables. He's similar to Cook in Buffalo
in a lot of ways in his elusiveness and his
ability to dominate on the perimeter.
Speaker 1 (09:20):
When the regular season opened, the top two left tackles
listed on the flip card for the game against the
Jets were Broderick Jones and Calvin Anderson. Today, both of
them are an injured reserve, and the top two left
tackles on your current depth chart are Andres Pete, who
wasn't signed until after training camp opened and started this
week in the concussion protocol, and Dylan Cook, who was
(09:43):
added to the fifty three roster just on Wednesday. Every
NFL season tests the depth of every team's roster, But
is there any way to prepare for this kind of
a situation.
Speaker 2 (09:55):
It certainly is. And you know, I use a couple
quote unquote tomalinism to wet our appetite for it. One
man's misfortune is another man's opportunity. I always want those
that are waiting in the ranks to understand that it's
not if it's win in this business. From that perspective,
and the other one is the standard is the standard.
(10:16):
There's a fine line between being a backup and practice
squad player and a pro bowler at this level in
terms of the totality of the football world, and so
never discount the talents of those that are waiting in
the ranks. I challenge them to be ready and to
play and to play well. I'm not going to be
surprised when they do. But it's also a coach and
a strategy responsibility. We're not going to send Dylan out
(10:38):
there and hope for the best. It's our responsibility to
ensure schematically that we give him an opportunity to be successful,
and it's his responsibility to play well.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
All week, the National Weather Service was calling for tonight's
temperatures to be in the low twenties and dropping through
the night.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
How do you prepare for that? Leading up to the game,
you know, because we're pissed group. I don't know that
we have to. It's just, you know, live where we work.
You know, we had a great outside practice on Saturday
at actasure in the environment we live here day to day.
I know over the last nineteen years, I've certainly developed
(11:18):
a thick skin relative to weather conditions. I did similar
things relative to the heat when I lived in Tampa
for five years. And so the weather conditions certainly are
going to be significant, but probably less significant for us
and those that have been here than the Miami Dolphins
and those that haven't.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
You mentioned your time in Tampa. When you were there,
did you find that the kind of weather, this kind
of December weather, was more of an adjustment for the
team from a warm weather climate.
Speaker 2 (11:46):
I'll tell you this, Okay. When I was in Tampa,
we were in the Black and Blue Division, and we
went in a historic period of time without winning the
game in thirty two degrees or and so that became
a storyline whenever we played in Green Bay late in
the year, whenever we had to go to Philadelphia in
(12:07):
the playoffs, etc. Thankfully, when we won the World Championship
in two thousand and two, we were able to shake
that monkey off our back in the NFC Championship in
Philadelphia at the VET and so certainly being a component
of a group like that and understanding that it is
certainly a period of adjustment and things to deal with,
(12:28):
and we lived it, and so I respect it.
Speaker 1 (12:32):
That's the Mike Tomlin Game Day Podcast. Subscribe and download
new episodes every week and check out all of the
other shows we have to offer on the Steelers Podcast
network that's available on the Steelers mobile app, the iHeartRadio app,
or wherever you get your podcasts.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark
My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.