As one of only three African American head coaches in the NFL, Pittsburgh Steelers' head coach Mike Tomlin is in a unique position to speak about the current state of affairs in the United States.

According to Brooke Pryor on Twitter, James Connor mentioned that Tomlin has been a great leader for the team in the wake of George Floyd's death and the subsequent protests around the country. Tomlin has shown his support to the players and is focused on leading them through this turbulent time.

“He's the ultimate leader,” Connor said. “He was really, really hurt by it. He explained to us that this issue has been going on for a while … the Steelers, we're putting together things.”

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The Steelers have not been shy to stand out and do things differently in the wake of national issues.

During Colin Kaepernick's protest in 2016 and the subsequent controversy, Tomlin decided to have the Steelers take a different stand. Instead of kneeling for the anthem, Tomlin decided to instead keep the team in the locker room before the game, with only Alejandro Villanueva choosing to stand at the front of the tunnel.

On top of Tomlin's outspokenness, the owners of the franchise, the Rooney family, is well known in modern days due to the Rooney Rule.  This rule, named after former Steelers owner Dan Rooney, requires NFL teams to interview at least one minority candidate for a head coaching position.  This rule has been expanded to require two minority interviews back in May. as well as expanding the types of jobs the Rooney Rule is attached to.