There’s no longer a question of whether Bill Cowher will coach next season. He will not. The more pertinent question is, will he ever coach again?

Those who know Cowher well insist the two coaches he continually thinks and talks about are former Steelers coach Chuck Noll and former Eagles, Rams and Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil. These are the two models in which Cowher helps measure his career.

Now think about both men. After 23 seasons of coaching the Steelers, Noll walked away in 1991, never coached again and never missed it. Cowher thinks about that often.

And he’s also said to also think about the Vermeil model. After coaching the Eagles from 1976 to 1982, Vermeil walked away from the game and spent 14 years away from it in television before returning in 1997 with the St. Louis Rams. Vermeil stayed out for 14 years, and those who know Cowher insist he has pondered that possibility, as well as the one of not coaching again.

Now a lot changes from one year to the next. But in this year, Cowher is no rush to return to the sideline.

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