There is no doubt in my mind that Kevin Dotson will be the Steelers starting left guard. He will begin to work his way back into the lineup and will show the coaching staff that he is the player they thought he was when they drafted him in the fourth round of last year’s NFL draft.
I might even be willing to go one step further and say Dotson will be the Steelers’ best and most consistent offensive lineman this year. He is only a second-year player, but his size and his athleticism shined at times last year in the games he played and started.
There is no controversy with respect to Dotson, who has been working with the second team at training camp and was called out by Mike Tomlin after practice Sunday. He has been dealing with some injuries, he may have even gotten out of shape in the offseason, but he will get it in gear and be ready to go when the season starts.
“He has done nothing to earn first-team reps,” Tomlin said of Dotson. “What are we talking about? He’s a second-year guy who hasn’t worked.”
The real story in this Dotson saga isn’t anything about him, but rather Tomlin once again proving that he is a master of handling players.
That’s why I have no doubt Dotson will get it in gear and be the Steelers’ starter, and probably sooner rather than later. Tomlin’s greatest strength is the most important attribute of any great coach, and it has nothing to do with Xs and Os.
Tomlin understands how to manage and motivate people and he commands enough respect from everyone in that locker room that when he speaks in harsh words, it is almost always received the right way. And no, it isn’t that Tomlin is a players’ coach. He is a no-nonsense coach that forges relationships with his players and they respond to him.
I’m convinced that the difference in Xs and Os between the best coach in the NFL and the worst coach in the NFL is minimal at best. I believe if men have risen to the level where they are one of 32 head coaches or 64 coordinators (offense or defense) on the planet, they have a demonstrated grasp of Xs and Os.
Let’s face it, football isn’t rocket science or splitting atoms, and there are only so many ways you can scheme and draw up plays. Yes, there can be an advantage in play calling and understanding when to make the right decisions in that regard, but we tend to overrate how much that stuff really is the difference between winning and losing.
I think the difference between winning and losing is about how players respond to coaching and which coaches push the right buttons more often than not. Yes, Bill Belichick is an incredible defensive mind, but his greatest strength is that he knows what buttons to push to get his players to perform when the lights are on.
Tomlin doesn’t get enough credit for how he handles players, mostly because he let some of the antics of Antonio Brown go on with seemingly no pushback from him. But it is clear he got the most out of Brown because of the way he handled him, and when Brown finally pushed him too far, he was suspended\. But he got Brown to show up and play hard every Sunday, and that is not an easy thing to do.
Dotson is a second-year player and not a grizzled vet with multiple Pro Bowls under his belt, so Tomlin wants to set the tone with him about being a professional. He also wants Dotson to understand that everybody’s job is up for review every day. Tomlin wouldn’t go this route with a veteran who has been slowed by injuries because he doesn’t need to — those guys already get it.
That is why his players respect him and why his players will support him when he does go public with his displeasure of another player. They understand he respects them and wants them to be the best players they are capable of being. That much has been clear since the day he arrived, and it is why he has had so much success.
Tomlin has had a lot of great players over the years, no doubt, but a lot of coaches have great players and never come close to the same level of success he has had. Nobody would ever say Tomlin is one of those savants. and his game management isn’t always very clean, either, but his teams always win more than a lot of other guys who are considered experts in those areas.
This episode with Dotson is another reminder of why Tomlin is one of the great coaches in the NFL and why he will and should coach the Steelers as long as he wants. Putting players in schemes is the easy part of coaching. Managing them, holding them accountable and getting them to respond is the hardest part, and Tomlin is a genius in those areas.
