The Pittsburgh Steelers are entering a new era this season, after former head coach Mike Tomlin shockingly stepped down from his position.  His time was marked with highs and lows, but it was easily one of the best times in the franchise’s history. Within the team, Tomlin was known to have constantly encouraged players to earn his trust. But, those who did have it could enjoy some perks, which came off to many as preferential treatment. Former Steelers offensive lineman Alejandro Villanueva shed light on this peculiar situation.

“It made Coach Tomlin happy to mistreat me a little bit,” Alejandro Villanueva said on the The Pump Fake podcast. “All of the O-linemen were first or second rounders. They were very established guys, second contracts. Everyone drove a Range Rover… I’m playing the most valuable position on the field right now, so I want to feel like I’m worth my position, but Coach Tomlin always saw me as a very young guy in terms of my experience, so he always wanted to keep me humble.”

Villanueva came to Pittsburgh as an undrafted free agent after serving in three tours with the military. He was among those who had to fight the hardest to prove their worth in the team. Villanueva worked hard and secured the starting left tackle position in 2015. And he made this opportunity count. Villanueva played in every single game during his six-year stint with the Steelers, and also earned two Pro Bowl honors. Despite these wins, Tomlin still kept the former OL on his toes.

“He made me room with someone all the time in Latrobe,” Villanueva added. “I never had my own room.”

He then shared some fun stories of how his roommates were not the best ones, like former Steelers tight end Jessee James and former quarterback Landry Jones. The latter was a particularly disturbing one for Villanueva, who kept him up with his snoring. Being one of the best on the team didn’t always mean they’d have it easy.

Tomlin was infamous for favoritism in the team, which cannot be denied. Former Steelers linebacker James Harrison recalled Tomlin saying that he’d “treat everybody fair,” but that didn’t mean he would “treat everybody the same.” Villanueva had to make his place at a time when the ‘Killer B’s’ — Antonio Brown, La’Veon Bell, and Ben Roethlisberger — were the face of the team. He never got to share that kind of fame in his career, but he braved such an environment to create a mark of his own.

In a way, Alejandro Villanueva would have accepted whatever Mike Tomlin put him through, because the latter came to him at a time at a tough time in his career. He’ll always hold the coach in high regard.

Mike Tomlin was a “father figure” to Villanueva

In 2014, Villanueva was among the first players to be cut from Philadelphia’s roster. He had planned to serve in the forces for a fourth time if such a situation did materialize. But he did not know that Tomlin had had his eye on him for some time. Eight days after he was cut, Tomlin called him. The rest is history. Villanueva pretty much owes his career to this one phone call, and for that, he’ll always be grateful to Tomlin.

“As somebody who spent a lot of time in the military, listening to military leaders, you’re like, ‘Dude, this guy is like a rockstar.'” Villanueva added. “And our time in Pittsburgh was very positive. It was all growing moments for me. [He] was like a father figure to me and to everybody else on the team. I was a really big fan of coach Tomlin.”

Tomlin and Villanueva have an extremely cordial relationship. The former OL found himself in a spot after he inadvertently became the only Steeler to stand for the anthem, ahead of the Chicago Bears game in 2017, while the rest of the team chose to stay in the tunnel. It created a lot of controversy about the team’s stance on politics, and Villanueva had said that he felt like he had thrown his team “under the bus.” But Tomlin responded that Villanueva had “nothing to apologize for.” He came from the military, after all.

Villanueva left the Steelers in 2021 and retired from the NFL in 2022. But if Tomlin hadn’t given him that call in 2014, he would have been forced to hang up his cleats without ever getting to wear them in a season. For that reason alone, Villanueva will always cherish the bond he has with the former head coach.