HBO’s Hard Knocks: In Season with the AFC North premiered Tuesday evening, and boy… did the Pittsburgh Steelers shine in their Hard Knocks debut. It wasn’t just the highlights of their Week 13 win over the Cincinnati Bengals, either. No, what really made them shine was the vibes. This team, at least from the outside, appears fully bought in.

The root of it all, of course, is HC Mike Tomlin, whose leadership popped off the page immediately. That was the biggest takeaway from the entire episode — the Steelers are locked into every word coming out of Tomlin’s mouth, and it’s not hard to see why. He brings an energy to the organization that stems from his absolute love for the game of football (and love for his players).

The Steelers are, generally speaking, a relatively “private” franchise. Tomlin acknowledged that several times in Tuesday’s press conference ahead of Week 14; he doesn’t feel that the public airing of grievances about his players does anything to accelerate their growth, so he doesn’t do it. He lifts them up when they’re down and gave a tangible example of that with the audio of what Tomlin said to Pickens after getting thrown down on the pick-six on their opening drive:

Reeling players back in. Being what they need at the moment. That’s what Tomlin preaches and practices.

Granted, this is the first such look fans have ever had at the inner workings of the Steelers as a franchise and their first look at what Tomlin’s like behind the scenes, so we don’t exactly have first-hand knowledge of how much the spirit of the 2024 Pittsburgh Steelers locker room contrasts those of the last two seasons… but I have to imagine the difference is tangible.