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I was a little kid for the 70's teams, so I don't have all that many direct memories from that era, just a few. But who are your favorite/respected - maybe hated - players the Steelers have faced over the years?
There are a couple old school foes I do recall.
Earl Campbell. We mostly contained him in the bigger games (Shell broke his ribs in the playoffs, I believe) but, dear God what a beast this guy was. I think I remember him running flat over Lambert. Campbell was so big, powerful and fast (for his size) that he was more than a handful. He was like trying to tackle a big horse.
Along the same vein, Dan Pastorini. His #'s were nothing great (especially compared today's pass happy league), but I always thought he was underrated.
Wendell Tyler. He wasn't on my radar much, other than the year we faced him in the Super Bowl, but that year he averaged over 5 ypc and had our D on their heels early in the SB. He wasn't very big, but he was a fast sucker.
Moving onto the 80's.
James Brooks. One of the most underrated backs in my life. He was only about a buck-80, but he killed us. I remember him taking a pitch and outrunning ROD WOODSON down the sideline. One of the best small backs of all time.
Pete Johnson. One of the few (Earl Campbell already mentioned) backs who ever trucked Jack Lambert. He flat out run him over. He was huge.
Icky Woods. Short career, only one good season, really. But that year, he was somethin'.
Kevin Mack/Earnest Byner. Thunder and lightening. Hated them, but they were good.
Webster Slaughter. Hated him, but he hurt us.
Bernie Kosar. Never had that strong of an arm, but could wing it with accuracy. That was about the only time in the modern era that the Browns were the better team than Pgh. But they were.
Michael Dean Perry. A beast in the middle. Any DT posting that many sacks is special.
Late 80's/early 90's Oilers. That team was STACKED. They should have won a few rings. From top to bottom, they were infused with talent. Starting with a Hall of Fame QB (Moon threw nicest spiral I have ever seen) and an OL made of ALL FIRST ROUND draft picks, with a stable of good running backs (Lorenzo White, Highstreet, Rozier) and endless killer WRs (Jeffries, Pinket, Drew Hill, Duncan, Slaughter) and a D that was stacked from the DL to LB to DBs. It's amazing they didn't at least make it to a few Super Bowls. Chuck Noll would have won 5 rings with that team.
Late 90's Jags. They were in our div. back then, and in 1999 only lost to one team all year...TN twice. But for that span, they were better than the Steelers were.
Who else? Eric Metcalf. I remember when he basically beat us by himself, on that punt return.
There are a couple old school foes I do recall.
Earl Campbell. We mostly contained him in the bigger games (Shell broke his ribs in the playoffs, I believe) but, dear God what a beast this guy was. I think I remember him running flat over Lambert. Campbell was so big, powerful and fast (for his size) that he was more than a handful. He was like trying to tackle a big horse.
Along the same vein, Dan Pastorini. His #'s were nothing great (especially compared today's pass happy league), but I always thought he was underrated.
Wendell Tyler. He wasn't on my radar much, other than the year we faced him in the Super Bowl, but that year he averaged over 5 ypc and had our D on their heels early in the SB. He wasn't very big, but he was a fast sucker.
Moving onto the 80's.
James Brooks. One of the most underrated backs in my life. He was only about a buck-80, but he killed us. I remember him taking a pitch and outrunning ROD WOODSON down the sideline. One of the best small backs of all time.
Pete Johnson. One of the few (Earl Campbell already mentioned) backs who ever trucked Jack Lambert. He flat out run him over. He was huge.
Icky Woods. Short career, only one good season, really. But that year, he was somethin'.
Kevin Mack/Earnest Byner. Thunder and lightening. Hated them, but they were good.
Webster Slaughter. Hated him, but he hurt us.
Bernie Kosar. Never had that strong of an arm, but could wing it with accuracy. That was about the only time in the modern era that the Browns were the better team than Pgh. But they were.
Michael Dean Perry. A beast in the middle. Any DT posting that many sacks is special.
Late 80's/early 90's Oilers. That team was STACKED. They should have won a few rings. From top to bottom, they were infused with talent. Starting with a Hall of Fame QB (Moon threw nicest spiral I have ever seen) and an OL made of ALL FIRST ROUND draft picks, with a stable of good running backs (Lorenzo White, Highstreet, Rozier) and endless killer WRs (Jeffries, Pinket, Drew Hill, Duncan, Slaughter) and a D that was stacked from the DL to LB to DBs. It's amazing they didn't at least make it to a few Super Bowls. Chuck Noll would have won 5 rings with that team.
Late 90's Jags. They were in our div. back then, and in 1999 only lost to one team all year...TN twice. But for that span, they were better than the Steelers were.
Who else? Eric Metcalf. I remember when he basically beat us by himself, on that punt return.
