This post was originally published on this site.
No, Mike Tomlin doesn’t need a no-trade clause in his contract. He doesn’t need one. No NFL head coach does.
No NFL coach can be “traded” without the coach’s consent. The procedure contemplates that the coach’s current team and a new team will first reach an agreement as to compensation, if the coach leaves for the new team. After that deal is reached, the new team can talk directly to the coach about taking a new job.
If the coach says no, there’s no trade.
So here’s the question. Why should Tomlin agree to be traded? (Really, why should any coach?)
If it gets to the point at which a coach’s current team is willing to entertain trading him, there’s a clear problem in the relationship. Why not call the bluff? Dig in the heels? Refuse to accept a deal that would entail the coach going to a new team that would be giving up assets to get him?
Tomlin has earned the ability to walk away, if the Steelers decide it’s time to end the 19-year relationship. If it’s over, it’s over. And if there’s a deal the Steelers will do to trade him, the Steelers should be willing to let him go.