He did say in article " if the team was made entirely of draft picks and undrafted free agents" Yancey drafted in 4th round (1991) by San Diego, then next year Pittsburgh acquired him.
Bill Cowher's All Time Drafted (and undrafted) team.
- Thread starter Stryker
- Start date
He did say in article " if the team was made entirely of draft picks and undrafted free agents" Yancey drafted in 4th round (1991) by San Diego, then next year Pittsburgh acquired him.
The Cowher years picks (136) sorted by career NFL games active
Year Rnd Pick Pos To AP1 PB St CarAV G
1992 11 291 Kendall Gammon C 2006 0 1 0 11 234 1 136
1993 7 185 Jeff Zgonina DT 2009 0 0 3 41 218 2 135
1998 3 92 Hines Ward WR 2011 0 4 10 87 217 3 134
1998 1 26 Alan Faneca G 2010 6 9 12 112 206 4 133
1997 3 91 Mike Vrabel LB 2010 1 1 9 64 206 5 132
1999 7 228 Kris Brown K 2010 0 0 1 26 192 6 131
1998 4 117 Deshea Townsend DB 2010 0 0 3 41 190 7 130
1995 1 27 Mark Bruener TE 2008 0 0 9 10 189 8 129
1993 2 44 Chad Brown LB 2007 2 3 9 84 188 9 128
1993 6 162 Willie Williams DB 2005 0 0 5 45 188 10 127
1999 3 73 Joey Porter LB 2011 1 4 9 89 187 11 126
2002 4 128 Larry Foote LB 2014 0 0 7 62 187 12 125
1996 6 200 Orpheus Roye DT 2008 0 0 8 55 180 13 124
1992 2 38 Levon Kirkland LB 2002 1 2 9 82 176 14 123
2003 4 125 Ike Taylor DB 2014 0 0 9 51 174 15 122
1994 2 50 Brentson Buckner DT 2005 0 0 8 51 174 16 121
2001 1 19 Casey Hampton NT 2012 0 5 11 73 173 17 120
2000 5 137 Clark Haggans LB 2012 0 0 6 48 172 18 119
1994 3 88 Jason Gildon LB 2004 1 3 6 76 166 19 118
2002 3 94 Chris Hope DB 2012 0 1 7 44 163 20 117
1999 4 109 Aaron Smith DE 2011 0 1 5 70 160 21 116
2004 1 11 Ben Roethlisberger QB 2014 0 3 11 103 159 22 115
2003 1 16 Troy Polamalu DB 2014 4 8 9 96 158 23 114
2002 7 242 Brett Keisel DE 2014 0 1 5 58 156 24 113
2005 1 30 Heath Miller TE 2014 0 2 10 44 153 25 112
2000 1 8 Plaxico Burress WR 2013 0 0 8 69 148 26 111
1996 7 242 Carlos Emmons LB 2006 0 0 5 54 147 27 110
2002 2 62 Antwaan Randle El WR 2010 0 0 4 41 143 28 109
1996 4 126 Earl Holmes LB 2005 0 0 8 58 139 29 108
1994 1 17 Charles Johnson WR 2002 0 0 9 38 133 30 107
1995 4 120 Oliver Gibson DT 2003 0 0 4 27 133 31 106
1992 1 11 Leon Searcy T 1999 0 1 7 53 126 32 105
1992 8 203 Darren Perry DB 2000 0 0 8 48 126 33 104
1995 2 60 Kordell Stewart QB 2005 0 1 4 59 125 34 103
2004 3 75 Max Starks T 2013 0 0 5 46 125 35 102
1999 5 136 Jerame Tuman TE 2008 0 0 3 5 123 36 101
1998 5 137 Jason Simmons DB 2007 0 0 0 10 121 37 100
1993 4 108 Kevin Henry DE 2000 0 0 4 41 117 38 99
1992 3 67 Joel Steed NT 1999 0 1 7 48 115 39 98
2006 1 25 Santonio Holmes WR 2014 0 0 6 47 112 40 97
1994 5 140 Myron Bell DB 2001 0 0 3 17 112 41 96
2000 3 77 Hank Poteat DB 2009 0 0 0 14 112 42 95
2000 2 38 Marvel Smith T 2008 0 1 6 47 111 43 94
1995 5 151 Lee Flowers DB 2002 0 0 4 36 111 44 93
1997 1 24 Chad Scott DB 2006 0 0 3 44 108 92
2000 3 72 Kendrick Clancy DT 2009 0 0 3 23 106 91
1995 3 91 Brendan Stai G 2002 0 0 6 40 105 90
1993 3 76 Andre Hastings WR 2000 0 0 4 26 104 89
2005 2 62 Bryant McFadden DB 2011 0 0 1 26 96 88
2006 4 131 Willie Colon G 2014 0 0 6 38 95 87
1993 1 23 Deon Figures DB 1998 0 0 2 20 93 86
1999 1 13 Troy Edwards WR 2005 0 0 1 19 93 85
1995 4 125 Donta Jones LB 2000 0 0 0 9 91 84
2001 2 39 Kendrell Bell LB 2007 0 1 4 41 89 83
1996 3 92 Jon Witman RB 2001 0 0 3 3 85 82
2002 1 30 Kendall Simmons G 2009 0 0 5 37 84 81
1999 3 95 Amos Zereoue RB 2005 0 0 0 22 84 80
2001 6 181 Rodney Bailey DE 2007 0 0 0 7 84 79
2001 5 146 Chukky Okobi C 2007 0 0 0 7 78 78
2005 3 93 Trai Essex T 2012 0 0 1 16 76 77
2005 6 204 Chris Kemoeatu G 2011 0 0 3 25 75 76
1994 3 91 Bam Morris RB 1999 0 0 2 28 74 75
1998 6 178 Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afalaRB 2004 0 0 0 9 73 74
2006 3 83 Anthony Smith DB 2011 0 0 0 12 71 73
2002 5 166 Verron Haynes RB 2009 0 0 0 8 68 72
1995 5 161 Lance Brown DB 2001 0 0 1 6 58 71
1992 7 188 Scottie Graham RB 1997 0 0 0 8 57 70
1997 6 186 Daryl Porter DB 2001 0 0 0 7 55 69
2002 6 202 Lee Mays WR 2006 0 0 0 1 49 68
1997 2 53 Will Blackwell WR 2001 0 0 0 8 48 67
2001 6 182 Roger Knight LB 2004 0 0 0 4 48 66
1993 5 140 Marc Woodard LB 1996 0 0 0 4 48 65
1993 5 135 Lonnie Palelei G 1999 0 0 2 12 44 64
2004 2 38 Ricardo Colclough DB 2009 0 0 0 2 43 63
1996 1 29 Jamain Stephens T 2001 0 0 1 7 40 62
1995 7 247 Cole Ford K 1998 0 0 2 4 38 61
1992 4 94 Charles Davenport WR 1994 0 0 0 1 38 60
1994 6 178 Jim Miller QB 2002 0 0 1 16 37 59
1997 5 154 George Jones RB 1999 0 0 0 4 34 58
2000 4 103 Danny Farmer WR 2002 0 0 0 5 33 57
1993 8 216 Alex Van Pelt QB 2003 0 0 0 7 31 56
1998 2 41 Jeremy Staat DE 2003 0 0 0 3 31 55
1993 7 189 Craig Keith TE 1995 0 0 0 0 28 54
1999 2 59 Scott Shields DB 2000 0 0 0 5 26 53
1994 5 148 Gary Brown T 1996 0 0 0 5 25 52
2005 7 244 Noah Herron RB 2006 0 0 0 3 23 51
1994 6 180 Eric Ravotti LB 1996 0 0 0 3 23 50
1996 3 72 Steve Conley LB 1998 0 0 0 1 21 49
2006 4 133 Orien Harris DT 2009 0 0 0 2 20 48
2003 2 59 Alonzo Jackson LB 2005 0 0 0 2 18 47
1998 3 66 Chris Conrad T 1999 0 0 0 4 17 46
2005 5 166 Rian Wallace LB 2006 0 0 0 2 16 45
1996 4 132 Jahine Arnold WR 1999 0 0 0 1 13 44
1996 5 163 Israel Raybon DE 1997 0 0 0 1 12 43
1992 5 123 Alan Haller DB 1995 0 0 0 0 12 42
1999 5 166 Malcolm Johnson WR 2000 0 0 0 0 11 41
2000 6 173 Chris Combs DE 2002 0 0 0 1 10 40
1999 7 214 Antonio Dingle DT 1999 0 0 0 0 9 39
2004 6 194 Matt Kranchick TE 2005 0 0 0 0 8 38
1995 7 235 Henry Bailey WR 1996 0 0 0 0 8 37
1994 4 122 Ta'ase Faumui DE 1995 0 0 0 0 8 36
2006 3 95 Willie Reid WR 2007 0 0 0 1 7 35
1992 7 179 Russ Campbell TE 1992 0 0 0 0 7 34
1999 7 219 Chad Kelsay LB 1999 0 0 0 0 6 33
1997 7 223 Mike Adams WR 1997 0 0 0 0 6 32
1999 3 74 Kris Farris T 2001 0 0 0 1 3 31
2003 5 163 Brian St. Pierre QB 2010 0 0 0 0 3 30
2000 5 163 Tee Martin QB 2003 0 0 0 0 3 29
1997 6 199 Rod Manuel DE 1998 0 0 0 0 3 28
1992 9 235 Elnardo Webster LB 1992 0 0 0 0 3 27
2002 7 212 LaVar Glover DB 2002 0 0 0 0 2 26
2001 4 111 Mathias Nkwenti T 2003 0 0 0 0 2 25
1998 7 221 Angel Rubio DE 1999 0 0 0 0 2 24
1997 3 82 Paul Wiggins T 1998 0 0 0 0 2 23
2004 7 212 Eric Taylor DT 2005 0 0 0 0 1 22
1998 4 123 Carlos King RB 1998 0 0 0 0 1 21
2006 5 164 Omar Jacobs QB 0 0 0 20
2006 5 167 Charles Davis TE 0 0 0 19
2006 6 201 Marvin Philip C 0 0 0 18
2006 7 240 Cedric Humes RB 0 0 0 17
2005 4 131 Fred Gibson WR 0 0 0 16
2005 7 228 Shaun Nua DE 0 0 0 15
2004 5 145 Nathaniel Adibi DE 0 0 0 14
2004 6 177 Bo Lacy T 0 0 0 13
2004 6 197 Drew Caylor C 0 0 0 12
2003 7 242 J.T. Wall RB 0 0 0 11
2001 7 218 Chris Taylor WR 0 0 0 10
2000 6 204 Jason Gavadza TE 0 0 0 9
1998 6 186 Ryan Olson LB 0 0 0 8
1996 6 203 Spence Fischer QB 0 0 0 7
1995 6 199 Barron Miles DB 0 0 0 6
1994 7 209 Brice Abrams RB 0 0 0 5
1992 8 206 Hesham Ismail G 0 0 0 4
1992 8 215 Nate Williams DT 0 0 0 3
1992 10 262 Mike Saunders RB 0 0 0 2
1992 12 318 Cornelius Benton QB 0 0 0 1
Year Rnd Pick Pos To AP1 PB St CarAV G
1992 11 291 Kendall Gammon C 2006 0 1 0 11 234 1 136
1993 7 185 Jeff Zgonina DT 2009 0 0 3 41 218 2 135
1998 3 92 Hines Ward WR 2011 0 4 10 87 217 3 134
1998 1 26 Alan Faneca G 2010 6 9 12 112 206 4 133
1997 3 91 Mike Vrabel LB 2010 1 1 9 64 206 5 132
1999 7 228 Kris Brown K 2010 0 0 1 26 192 6 131
1998 4 117 Deshea Townsend DB 2010 0 0 3 41 190 7 130
1995 1 27 Mark Bruener TE 2008 0 0 9 10 189 8 129
1993 2 44 Chad Brown LB 2007 2 3 9 84 188 9 128
1993 6 162 Willie Williams DB 2005 0 0 5 45 188 10 127
1999 3 73 Joey Porter LB 2011 1 4 9 89 187 11 126
2002 4 128 Larry Foote LB 2014 0 0 7 62 187 12 125
1996 6 200 Orpheus Roye DT 2008 0 0 8 55 180 13 124
1992 2 38 Levon Kirkland LB 2002 1 2 9 82 176 14 123
2003 4 125 Ike Taylor DB 2014 0 0 9 51 174 15 122
1994 2 50 Brentson Buckner DT 2005 0 0 8 51 174 16 121
2001 1 19 Casey Hampton NT 2012 0 5 11 73 173 17 120
2000 5 137 Clark Haggans LB 2012 0 0 6 48 172 18 119
1994 3 88 Jason Gildon LB 2004 1 3 6 76 166 19 118
2002 3 94 Chris Hope DB 2012 0 1 7 44 163 20 117
1999 4 109 Aaron Smith DE 2011 0 1 5 70 160 21 116
2004 1 11 Ben Roethlisberger QB 2014 0 3 11 103 159 22 115
2003 1 16 Troy Polamalu DB 2014 4 8 9 96 158 23 114
2002 7 242 Brett Keisel DE 2014 0 1 5 58 156 24 113
2005 1 30 Heath Miller TE 2014 0 2 10 44 153 25 112
2000 1 8 Plaxico Burress WR 2013 0 0 8 69 148 26 111
1996 7 242 Carlos Emmons LB 2006 0 0 5 54 147 27 110
2002 2 62 Antwaan Randle El WR 2010 0 0 4 41 143 28 109
1996 4 126 Earl Holmes LB 2005 0 0 8 58 139 29 108
1994 1 17 Charles Johnson WR 2002 0 0 9 38 133 30 107
1995 4 120 Oliver Gibson DT 2003 0 0 4 27 133 31 106
1992 1 11 Leon Searcy T 1999 0 1 7 53 126 32 105
1992 8 203 Darren Perry DB 2000 0 0 8 48 126 33 104
1995 2 60 Kordell Stewart QB 2005 0 1 4 59 125 34 103
2004 3 75 Max Starks T 2013 0 0 5 46 125 35 102
1999 5 136 Jerame Tuman TE 2008 0 0 3 5 123 36 101
1998 5 137 Jason Simmons DB 2007 0 0 0 10 121 37 100
1993 4 108 Kevin Henry DE 2000 0 0 4 41 117 38 99
1992 3 67 Joel Steed NT 1999 0 1 7 48 115 39 98
2006 1 25 Santonio Holmes WR 2014 0 0 6 47 112 40 97
1994 5 140 Myron Bell DB 2001 0 0 3 17 112 41 96
2000 3 77 Hank Poteat DB 2009 0 0 0 14 112 42 95
2000 2 38 Marvel Smith T 2008 0 1 6 47 111 43 94
1995 5 151 Lee Flowers DB 2002 0 0 4 36 111 44 93
1997 1 24 Chad Scott DB 2006 0 0 3 44 108 92
2000 3 72 Kendrick Clancy DT 2009 0 0 3 23 106 91
1995 3 91 Brendan Stai G 2002 0 0 6 40 105 90
1993 3 76 Andre Hastings WR 2000 0 0 4 26 104 89
2005 2 62 Bryant McFadden DB 2011 0 0 1 26 96 88
2006 4 131 Willie Colon G 2014 0 0 6 38 95 87
1993 1 23 Deon Figures DB 1998 0 0 2 20 93 86
1999 1 13 Troy Edwards WR 2005 0 0 1 19 93 85
1995 4 125 Donta Jones LB 2000 0 0 0 9 91 84
2001 2 39 Kendrell Bell LB 2007 0 1 4 41 89 83
1996 3 92 Jon Witman RB 2001 0 0 3 3 85 82
2002 1 30 Kendall Simmons G 2009 0 0 5 37 84 81
1999 3 95 Amos Zereoue RB 2005 0 0 0 22 84 80
2001 6 181 Rodney Bailey DE 2007 0 0 0 7 84 79
2001 5 146 Chukky Okobi C 2007 0 0 0 7 78 78
2005 3 93 Trai Essex T 2012 0 0 1 16 76 77
2005 6 204 Chris Kemoeatu G 2011 0 0 3 25 75 76
1994 3 91 Bam Morris RB 1999 0 0 2 28 74 75
1998 6 178 Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afalaRB 2004 0 0 0 9 73 74
2006 3 83 Anthony Smith DB 2011 0 0 0 12 71 73
2002 5 166 Verron Haynes RB 2009 0 0 0 8 68 72
1995 5 161 Lance Brown DB 2001 0 0 1 6 58 71
1992 7 188 Scottie Graham RB 1997 0 0 0 8 57 70
1997 6 186 Daryl Porter DB 2001 0 0 0 7 55 69
2002 6 202 Lee Mays WR 2006 0 0 0 1 49 68
1997 2 53 Will Blackwell WR 2001 0 0 0 8 48 67
2001 6 182 Roger Knight LB 2004 0 0 0 4 48 66
1993 5 140 Marc Woodard LB 1996 0 0 0 4 48 65
1993 5 135 Lonnie Palelei G 1999 0 0 2 12 44 64
2004 2 38 Ricardo Colclough DB 2009 0 0 0 2 43 63
1996 1 29 Jamain Stephens T 2001 0 0 1 7 40 62
1995 7 247 Cole Ford K 1998 0 0 2 4 38 61
1992 4 94 Charles Davenport WR 1994 0 0 0 1 38 60
1994 6 178 Jim Miller QB 2002 0 0 1 16 37 59
1997 5 154 George Jones RB 1999 0 0 0 4 34 58
2000 4 103 Danny Farmer WR 2002 0 0 0 5 33 57
1993 8 216 Alex Van Pelt QB 2003 0 0 0 7 31 56
1998 2 41 Jeremy Staat DE 2003 0 0 0 3 31 55
1993 7 189 Craig Keith TE 1995 0 0 0 0 28 54
1999 2 59 Scott Shields DB 2000 0 0 0 5 26 53
1994 5 148 Gary Brown T 1996 0 0 0 5 25 52
2005 7 244 Noah Herron RB 2006 0 0 0 3 23 51
1994 6 180 Eric Ravotti LB 1996 0 0 0 3 23 50
1996 3 72 Steve Conley LB 1998 0 0 0 1 21 49
2006 4 133 Orien Harris DT 2009 0 0 0 2 20 48
2003 2 59 Alonzo Jackson LB 2005 0 0 0 2 18 47
1998 3 66 Chris Conrad T 1999 0 0 0 4 17 46
2005 5 166 Rian Wallace LB 2006 0 0 0 2 16 45
1996 4 132 Jahine Arnold WR 1999 0 0 0 1 13 44
1996 5 163 Israel Raybon DE 1997 0 0 0 1 12 43
1992 5 123 Alan Haller DB 1995 0 0 0 0 12 42
1999 5 166 Malcolm Johnson WR 2000 0 0 0 0 11 41
2000 6 173 Chris Combs DE 2002 0 0 0 1 10 40
1999 7 214 Antonio Dingle DT 1999 0 0 0 0 9 39
2004 6 194 Matt Kranchick TE 2005 0 0 0 0 8 38
1995 7 235 Henry Bailey WR 1996 0 0 0 0 8 37
1994 4 122 Ta'ase Faumui DE 1995 0 0 0 0 8 36
2006 3 95 Willie Reid WR 2007 0 0 0 1 7 35
1992 7 179 Russ Campbell TE 1992 0 0 0 0 7 34
1999 7 219 Chad Kelsay LB 1999 0 0 0 0 6 33
1997 7 223 Mike Adams WR 1997 0 0 0 0 6 32
1999 3 74 Kris Farris T 2001 0 0 0 1 3 31
2003 5 163 Brian St. Pierre QB 2010 0 0 0 0 3 30
2000 5 163 Tee Martin QB 2003 0 0 0 0 3 29
1997 6 199 Rod Manuel DE 1998 0 0 0 0 3 28
1992 9 235 Elnardo Webster LB 1992 0 0 0 0 3 27
2002 7 212 LaVar Glover DB 2002 0 0 0 0 2 26
2001 4 111 Mathias Nkwenti T 2003 0 0 0 0 2 25
1998 7 221 Angel Rubio DE 1999 0 0 0 0 2 24
1997 3 82 Paul Wiggins T 1998 0 0 0 0 2 23
2004 7 212 Eric Taylor DT 2005 0 0 0 0 1 22
1998 4 123 Carlos King RB 1998 0 0 0 0 1 21
2006 5 164 Omar Jacobs QB 0 0 0 20
2006 5 167 Charles Davis TE 0 0 0 19
2006 6 201 Marvin Philip C 0 0 0 18
2006 7 240 Cedric Humes RB 0 0 0 17
2005 4 131 Fred Gibson WR 0 0 0 16
2005 7 228 Shaun Nua DE 0 0 0 15
2004 5 145 Nathaniel Adibi DE 0 0 0 14
2004 6 177 Bo Lacy T 0 0 0 13
2004 6 197 Drew Caylor C 0 0 0 12
2003 7 242 J.T. Wall RB 0 0 0 11
2001 7 218 Chris Taylor WR 0 0 0 10
2000 6 204 Jason Gavadza TE 0 0 0 9
1998 6 186 Ryan Olson LB 0 0 0 8
1996 6 203 Spence Fischer QB 0 0 0 7
1995 6 199 Barron Miles DB 0 0 0 6
1994 7 209 Brice Abrams RB 0 0 0 5
1992 8 206 Hesham Ismail G 0 0 0 4
1992 8 215 Nate Williams DT 0 0 0 3
1992 10 262 Mike Saunders RB 0 0 0 2
1992 12 318 Cornelius Benton QB 0 0 0 1
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Noll was fantastic in the 70's, but was awful the first half of the 80's. However, he really regained his touch late in his tenure, and Noll picks were the heart of Cowher's first stretch of playoff teams. If Noll had hired someone other than Joe Walton to run his offense, we might have gotten that fifth Lombardi a decade earlier, as Noll would never have let the San Diego debacle happen, nor would he have purposely lost a playoff game to punish a player the way Cowher did in 1992.
I dunno, as I recall Walton was only here for two years and the bulk of the better offensive players were gone by then. Considering that he had been a HC previously, we expected better though. We had that comical stretch where the defense scored more points on INT and fumble returns than the offense did. Note to the younger members of SN, that really did happen, it's not just Burgundy being funny.
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We made the playoffs in 1989, then Walton came. Neil and Bubby couldn't grasp his offense, which is where we ran into trouble. We had lots of young talent on offense, and we took advantage of it when Ron Earhart came in and simplified things. We had Dirt at center, and Hoge and Foster in the backfield, Eric Green at tight end, along with Ernie Mills, and Lipps at wideout. Justin Strzelczyk, and John Jackson were on the o-line, along with Tunch, Haselrig, and Terry Long. That is a lot of talent. Walton was just the wrong guy for that particular team. We were on the rise after 89, and Walton stopped us dead in our tracks.
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I've talk about this before. Cowher had to replace almost the entire defense in just a few years. He had a few of Noll's good players but without Cowher replacing a lot of Noll's bad players they don't win anything. Noll had a lot of older players and some guys that just weren't good enough. Cowher infused the team with better players through the draft and picking up FAs.
I stand corrected on the talent, I was thinking more of the 70's guys retiring, but I agree that the O was pretty bad under Walton. I think that's when Bubby said he was coming "unglued", which Paulsen and Krenn on the DVE Morning Show had fun with for months.
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Neil was drafted in 1991 and was a rookie under Walton for one year. Foster was drafted in 1990 and only started a few games. John Jackson is a fan favorite but he never made a pro-bowl. Terry Long was an average guard but nothing special. I think he was hurt lot when Walton was there. Justin Strzelczyk was drafted in 1990 and never started a game with Walton. Lipps wasn't anything special either. He never caught more than 55 rec. in a year and never had a 1000 yard season. Hasselrig only played 5 years and only started 47 games. He was only with the Steelers for 4 years. He wasn't a great player either.
I always saw them as scrappy but not very talented.
Good catch! Karma my friend. I just loveded Yancy soooo much!!!
Don't get antsy, don't get fancy, just hit Yancy!!!
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Yeah, but the three cornerstones of that defense were Noll guys. Woodson, Lake, and Lloyd. Those are elite players there. Add Dirt to that group, and there is not a single player that BC brought in during his first run of playoff teams, via the draft, or undrafted, that I would take over any of those four, and that includes Kirkland, who was Cowher's best draftee, until BC began hitting home runs in the late 90's.
That is a strong core of guys that were in their primes when Cowher took over. Green was a very good tight end, and Foster was an elite back, but Cowher was just as stupid with him as Tomlin was with Willie Parker, and he was ruined after carrying the ball an idiotic 390 times in 1992. Hardy Nickerson was another good young player that Cowher inherited. Unfortunately, he didn't stick around. Cowher did a good job of filling the gaps with solid players, but of course neglected the most important position on the team. When Noll's guys got old, the team declined.
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Sorry but that is incorrect. Almost all of Noll's guy were gone before the SB team. The SB team's best offensive skilled positions were all from Cowher. Johnson and Thigpen were from Cowher. Bruener was the starting TE after Green had left. He brought in Greene at LOLB and had Brown and Kirkland on the inside. Only Lloyd remained from Noll at the LB spot. Woodson was hurt all year and left the next season. Also Foster was injury prone. He carried the ball 390 for one season but only had 915 for his career. He was also bigger than Parker. He was 5'10 and 223 LBs. Parker was much small than that.
Green had a 6 game drug suspension right after Cowher took over in 92. Then he held out in 94' for a game. Then left right after the season. He only played 3 years with Cowher and only had one 16 game season. He never sniffed a pro-bowl with Miami.
My point is that Cowher filled both the offense and defense with his guys. Many of Noll's guys were already old and had to be replaced ASAP. Tomlin's SB team was made almost entirely of Cowher's players. 10 of his 11 starters on defense were from Cowher. Cowher never had that many Noll players after his first season. Just look at Cowher's 2nd season defense. These were his guys in 1993:
Steed, Greene, Kirkland, Brown, and Perry. That's just in one season. Tomlin didn't have 5 of his starters on defense until 2013. That's is 7 years into his career. Cowher had to rebuild a defense in one year what it took Tomlin 7 years to do.
Yes, Cowher had a nice core of players but without his draft picks and FAs they don't win anything. Most were old and gone within a few years.
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Woodson left after the 96 season. I'm not talking about just one year, I'm talking about the entire 6 year stretch of playoff teams. Woodson and Lloyd were the heart and soul of those teams. One of the reasons that Foster had so few carries is that he was damaged goods after 1992. Cowher did a nice job of filling around those stars on defense, but what I'm really saying is that the players he brought in during his first run, don't really compare to what he brought in during his second run. It's not close.
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Woodson and Lloyd were the heart and soul but they were not the only talent on the team. They won just fine when Woodson was gone an entire year. On that last playoff team during the 6 year run there were 2 Noll players on defense and Woodson had left. There were only 3 Noll players on offense. Cowher, unlike Tomlin, replaced talent with talent and totally remade the defense in just a couple of years. Tomlin not only kept the heart and soul (Troy, Harrison et el) but he kept the entire Cowher defense for years and is struggling now because he hasn't replaced talent with talent.
Cowher also had to contend with Donahoe. Their relationship was contentious before the Edwards pick. Tomlin has had the benefit of having a SB winning team with a franchise QB his entire tenure. He got them when most were still young and he road them as far as he could. Now that Cowher's players are retiring he hasn't been able to replace them. Cowher replaced almost the entire defense in just a couple of years. And won with his guys.
Cowher got better in his second run because he got more power to draft his type of players. Tomlin hasn't shown the ability to do that yet. The defense is at lows it hasn't seen since Noll's last year. BTW Noll had Woodson and Lloyd for 5 years and Lake for 3 years and didn't win anything. He had Tunch, Johnson, Lipps, Hoge, Haselrig, Dawson etc. for years and never won anything. They were good but they had no one around them. Cowher put players in place around them to win. Tomlin has never been able to do that at any point.
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I wouldn't totally say that. Yeah, Tomlin has Ben, but he's done a good job of surrounding him with talent. The offense is as good as it's ever been. The defense is another story of course. How the guys brought in over the last couple of years, plus this year progress, will determine Tomlin's legacy. If they are just average, the team will be decent, but nothing special, and Tomlin will be seen as a George Seifert type coach, who did well with what he inherited, but couldn't keep it going. On the other hand, if players like Tuitt, Shazier, and "Bud" blossom, Tomlin will be getting a yellow jacket after he retires. Time will tell.
Seifert is a poor analogy. He never had under 10 wins in a season and only missed the playoffs one time. Plus he won 2 Superbowls. If he coached longer, he could have been a HOF coach.
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But even with all this offense they haven't won a playoff game in 4 years. The defense was horrible last year even when they played against very bad teams like the clowns and TB. Good teams killed them even if the offense saved them a few times. Time will tell and we'll see. But this year is going to be tough. No more Jets (who they lost to), TB, Jax, etc...
Tough to win playoff games when you're not in the playoffs...
I think that stat only matters if you lose all your playoff games for 4 strait years. Why don't we ask some Bengal fans what they think
I think that stat only matters if you lose all your playoff games for 4 strait years. Why don't we ask some Bengal fans what they think
That's a little unfair of you Vader, to WIN a playoff game, first you need to be IN the playoffs. /sarcasm
In some ways we might be better off with a tougher schedule given Tomlin's curious inability to beat bad teams.