Mike Tomlin, the longest-tenured coach in the NFL who has patrolled the sidelines in the Steel City for the last 19 years, has stepped down as head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The shocking report, sourced to an NFL general manager and confirmed by ESPN, comes one day after the Steelers’ 30-6 AFC Wild Card loss to the Houston Texans.

Because Tomlin is stepping down and not being fired, Pittsburgh will retain his rights. This leaves the now-former Steelers coach in an interesting position: Tomlin can either take time off or, if he still desires to coach, the Steelers could trade him to another franchise.

Another option, much talked about last week, is that Tomlin will use the time off to join one of the NFL’s family of broadcast networks. Reports surfaced last week that Tomlin may already have a deal with Fox.

In any event, it is the end of an era in Pittsburgh.

Tomlin took the Steelers to two Super Bowls and won one of them in the first half of his tenure. Then, beginning in 2016, the Steelers entered a drought of playoff success, losing seven consecutive playoff games by double digits. After Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement, Tomlin kept the Steelers competitive, posting winning records every season, but failed to replace Roethlisberger with the type of quarterback who could return the franchise to championship success.

Now, leading Pittsburgh back to the promised land will fall to a new coach, presumably much younger, to reinvigorate the organization. Like the Ravens, the Steelers’ divisional archrival, who also parted ways with their longtime head coach last week, the organization has had only three coaches over the past few decades. So whoever the Steelers select, they will likely not be looking for a “bridge” coach. Instead, they’ll want someone with staying power.

Regardless of who the new coach is, he’ll confront the same issue that vexed Tomlin and the rest of the organization for nearly ten years: Finding a young QB to replace Ben Roethlisberger.