Not entirely. In 2012, the Steelers found themselves with JONATHAN DWYER as their leading rusher, which is what led to the spending of a second-round pick in the following draft on Le'Veon Bell. The quick-footed big guy ran over, through and around defenders for nine years with the Steelers. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari. All-time Scoring Leader: Gary Anderson 1,343 points These quarterbacks have started at least one game for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Williams had his first 1,000-yard season and averaged 13.3 ppg. Before Franco Harris, there was John Frenchy Fuqua. 10 on the Steelers' all-time rushing list with 3,549 yards. Yes, that was his average. While those numbers may not seem impressive by todays standards, they were good enough to earn Tracy Pro Bowl appearances with the Steelers in 1958 and 1960. The Best Pittsburgh Steelers Tight Ends Of All Time, Vote up the players who had the most success playing tight end for the Pittsburgh Steelers. In 2015 he finished second in the league in rushing and earned a spot on the All-Pro Team. Pittsburgh Steelers Draft History. The move closes the latest chapter of Wentz's career after just one season in Washington. Despite the occurrences of injury, Hoge ran for 3,115 yards as a Steeler and rushed for 21 touchdowns. I predict that sometime in the next decade, an offensive coordinator will go back to power football and line up with a tight end, a fullback, and a tailback in an I-formation for most of the game. I enjoy the passing game, and I love that Ben Roethlisberger has matured into an elite quarterback, but it is hard for me to imagine there is a better way to play football than Steelers Football. Harris managed to get 691 rushing yards, with an average of five yards. Sproles has nearly as many receptions (460) as carries (516) since 2010, and he has 3,936 receiving yards. Chances are it is an announcer who remembers some of the great backs in Steelers history and how they dominated the game. Seasons: 90 (1933 to 2022) Record (W-L-T): 666-585-23 Playoff Record: 36-27 Super Bowls Won: 6 (8 Appearances) Championships Won *: 6 . Including last season when Bell sat out because of a contract dispute, the two-time All-Pro has missed 34 games in his six-year career. Last season he rushed for only 885 yards, but that came in 12 games. Many teams even rotate three or more backs throughout the game, with all getting an equal number of carries. It was thought by the Steelers coaching staff and fans alike that Pittsburgh had found their new star running back. He also made the Pro Bowl in 2013 and 2016, the last of which with the Titans. The following is the Pittsburgh Steelers all-time roster, browsable by last name or position. By the time the fourth quarter rolls around, it is easy to see why opposing defenses would wish they were somewhere else. In the end Rocky Bleier rushed for 3,865 yards, 1,294 yards receiving on 136 catches and scored 25 times. Pittsburgh Steelers Stats: The official source for Pittsburgh Steelers game statistics . As the tight end position increasingly becomes more of a focal point in offensive schemes , one can only imagine what this list will look like in years down the road. In 1980, Thornton would average five yards-per-carry while carrying the rock 78 times. But he stayed. Born in the Ivory Coast, Zereoue played his high school football in Long Island, New York and then went on to be a star running back for the Mountaineers. Charles also ran for 1,509 yards in 2012 and 1,033 yards in 2014. Parker set the record for longest rushing touchdown from scrimmage in a Super Bowl (XL) with a romp of 75 yards which still stands today. Rob Burns / AP Photo. Williams didn't post a 1,000-yard season in this decade mostly due to the fact he shared the backfield with another player on our list. Charles may have to wait awhile to get into the Hall of Fame because despite an 11-year career, his prime was rather short. His best season came in 2015, which was the year after Williams departed, when he rushed for 989 yards and six touchdowns for the 15-1 Panthers. Best: Franco Harris. Instagram Twitter Facebook Snapchat Shop Icon Profile Overlay Avatar Add Airplay Arrow Left Arrow Right Arrow Up Arrow Down Audio Back 5s Back 10s Back 30s Calendar Chart Check Down Left . It was a hard task to actually rank all of the great running backs . But from 2015-16, he posted more than 1,000 rushing yards, 1,500 yards from scrimmage and at least 13 touchdowns each season. In the following AFC title game against Miami, Pollard was held to just 48 yards rushing. Former Steelers running back Willie Parker (39) acknowledges the crowd during a 2018 against the Chargers at Heinz Field. Barkley reminded the NFL world this past season that he's one of the best running backs in the league by rushing for a career-high 1,312 yards and 10 touchdowns. We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. In two seasons, he is already 18th among all Steelers backs in rushing. Ingram's best season came in 2017 when he posted 1,124 yards and 12 touchdowns. Landry Jones (2015-2017) Tommy Maddox (2002-2005) Terry Bradshaw (1970-1983) The number of games they started during the season is listed to the right of their name: Season. The Steelers ran out the pro set for most of the 1970s and 1980s under head coach Chuck Noll. From '61 to '64, he was part of a powerful rushing attack along with Hall of Famer John Henry Johnson. NICK CHUBB, CLEVELAND BROWNS. All-time Receiving Leader: Hines Ward 1,000 rec, 12,083 yds, 85 TD . Rashard Mendenhall: Like Barry Foster before him, Rashard Mendenhall was done with professional football by the age of 26. He also was a punt returner, bringing back 20 punts with a 14.0 average per return. During his career, he's averaged 128.9 yards from scrimmage per game. He has six 1,000-yard seasons and six Pro Bowl nominations with the Eagles and Bills during the 2010s. John Fuqua: How could any Steelers fan in the Nation of Black and Gold not smile when speaking of John Frenchy Fuqua. His performance in the 1989 playoffs, when he turned in back-to-back 100-yard games against Houston and Denver, is the stuff of Steelers' legend. Chubb is not the most dangerous or highly . Steelers running back James Conner (30) runs for a short gain past Titans cornerback Kristian Fulton (26) during the first half at Nissan Stadium. In 2011 and 2013, he made All-Pro, and in 2013 he posted 2,146 yards from scrimmage. Sep 20, 1992; San Diego, CA, USA; FILE PHOTO; Pittsburgh Steelers running back Barry Foster (29) in action against San Diego Chargers defenders Junior Seau (55) and George Thornton (93) at Jack . It wasn't too long ago that Freeman was regarded as a top-five back in the league. That's Steelers football. In Pittsburgh, he was everything but. Fuqua would have to be the most colorful player in Steelers history as well as the most controversial. All logos are the trademark & property of their owners and not Sports Reference LLC. The fullback might get the ball once or twice a game in short-yardage situations, but for the most part, he was turned into a blocking specialist. In 2006 he tried to make a comeback in the Arena Football League and the National Indoor Football League but that last just part of one season. Sidney Thornton: Another stout running back for Pittsburgh was the bullish Thornton who weighed in at 230 pounds during his play days in Pittsburgh from 1977 to 1982. Bleier was an outstanding lead blocker as well as being able to run the ball well and also had solid hands as a receiver. Born Byron Morris, drafted in the third round of the 1994 draft, Morris immediately made an impact with the Pittsburgh Steelers coming to them from Texas Tech University. Fran Rogel: For Steelers fans who watched the team in the 1950s they would be familiar with a famous nursery rhyme with a Pittsburgh Steelers twist. Another big bruising back that also has surprising quickness, Bell at 244 pounds is turning into a super star in the NFL. . He'll go down as one of the best power backs in history, and in this decade Lynch has carried the ball 1,791 times for 7,778 yards. Running backs are not the commodities they once were. Draft Henry with absolute confidence this season if you have a top-five pick. He's another back who never led the league in rushing and never made All-Pro. [3], List of National Football League career rushing yards leaders, Players with at least 10,000 rushing yards, Players with at least 1,000 postseason rushing yards. Le'veon Bell also earned a reputation as one of the most patient RBs in the NFL. This is a list of National Football League running backs by total career rushing yards, and includes the 31 running backs who have rushed for at least 10,000 yards, for which sixteen of them have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was intensive care for 48 hours and this forced his retirement. As the tight end position increasingly becomes more of a focal point in offensive schemes , one. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. Merril Hoge was a versatile fullback who could carry the ball, catch passes, and block. Dave Holcomb began working as a sports writer in 2013 after graduating from Syracuse University. Dick Hoak: The running backs coach for the Steelers for an incredible 35 years, Hoak was also an excellent player at the position he would spend so many years coaching up. He would end up moving to the Dallas Cowboys where he would get a chance to face off against his former team in two more Super Bowls (X and XIII). Harris was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990. We present them here for purely educational purposes. Copyright 2023 YB Media, LLC. Williams recorded at least 730 rushing yards in a season four times during the 2010s, and he ended the decade with 4,246 rushing yards. 8. Sadly, the days of Steelers Football seem to have gone the way of the dropkick. The Pittsburgh Steelers have a long history of smash-mouth football dating back to before they ever won their first Super Bowl. 20 and retired with that number despite the departure of Pearson to Dallas. The Steelers have had several players enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame after being a part of the Pittsburghs ground game for most of or all of their entire careers. But Foster ended up as a one-hit wonder because when he was at peak ability he really didn't love the game, and then it became too late. Unfortunately for Johnson, his 2,000-yard season came in 2009, so it just missed the cut for counting on this list. A good scoring drive based on running plays eats up the clock and keeps the ball out of the hands of the other team's offense. In addition, he got 52 receiving yards, with an average of 10.4. In 2012, he made the All-Pro team with 1,590 rushing yards and 1,786 yards from scrimmage. One return went to the house. 22. Bleier starred in Super Bowl XIII with a touchdown reception and a recovered onside kick to seal Pittsburghs third NFL title. Bell will pay the price this season with a three-game suspension to start the 2015 season. In 1982, he was Pittsburghs first overall pick in the draft coming in at number 12. Bell rushed for 1,361 yards in 2014, but what turned that into first-team All-Pro recognition were his 83 catches for 854 yards. Let's take a look back at the rest of the Steelers picks since the 2000 season. NAME GP RUSH YDS ATT YPC RUSH YDS/G RUSH TD REC YDS REC TRG AVG REC YDS/G REC TD; Felix Jones: 16: 184: 48: 3.8: 11.5: 0: 63: 9: 13: 7.0: 3.9: 0: Isaac Redman: 3: 12: 10: 1.2 . Mendenhall spent five seasons in Pittsburgh and was a member of two Super Bowl teams. Posted August 12, 2019 In the last 10 years, 10 different backs have led the league in PPR scoring. It's Le'Veon Bell because there is thought given to picking players who could function as a unit if the position require that. As an undrafted rookie in 2004, Bill Cowher took a chance on the 5-foot-10, 209-pound first-year player and Parker impressed sharing time with The Bus, Jerome Bettis. The former Heisman Trophy winner is another example of a highly regarded college back getting off to a slow start in the NFL. One of the best free agent signings of the Mike Tomlin era, DeAngelo Williams was never thought to be more than a top backup running back. 2023 ABG-SI LLC. He stepped in for a banged-up Willie Parker in 2009 and ran for 1,108 yards and seven touchdowns. He returned to put . After five seasons of never finishing higher than RB34, Williams had a career year in 2022, finishing as the overall RB18. Outside linebacker Joey Porter came to Pittsburgh in 1999. Bettis was team-first through some questionable demotions and worse decisions as to the direction of the offense, and he welcomed Duce Staley and mentored Willie Parker along the way to a Super Bowl championship to complete a quest his teammates had dedicated to him. Fullback Franco Harris came to the Steelers in the 1972 draft and made an immediate impact. Last season he was in the top five among running backs in several categories. 2022 AFC North Standings. It's a smaller sample size, but Elliott has also posted 131.2 yards from scrimmage per game in his three seasons. But Jackson was still one of the best runners of the 2010s. Watch our How-To Videos to Become a Stathead, Subscribe to Stathead and get access to more data than you can imagine. The All-Modern Era team is made up of 26 players - 11 on offense, 11 on defense, and four specialists. Bettis was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2015. However, from 2010-14 he was the best all-purpose back in the league. In 79 games with the Steelers, he carried the ball for 3,343 yards and 22 touchdowns. Reportedly, a local sportswriter told Rooney that Kiesling purposely made his lineman jump offsides so they could run their bread-and-butter Rogel running play first. Matte took over for another fantastic white running back, former Heisman Trophy winner and 1958 NFL Championship Game hero Alan Ameche. Today he is 68 and still colorful. Emmitt Smith has held the record since surpassing Walter Payton's long-standing total in 2002. During the 2021 offseason, Pittsburgh declined to re-sign Conner, making him a free agent and creating an opportunity for the Arizona Cardinals to scoop him up. Pittsburgh Steelers player information and depth chart order. 1. Dudley owns 44 touchdowns to his credit. As it is, he has 5,336 rushing yards and nearly 8,000 yards from scrimmage since coming into the league in 2013. This list of past Steelers tight ends features former greats, current impact players, and even future stars. Player ratings with position rankings. Copyright 2000-2023 Sports Reference LLC. His entire career was with the Steelers and he would finish those six seasons with 1,512 yards and 18 touchdowns. In many ways, this style of offense is the polar opposite of the methods the Steelers used to win six Super Bowls. Today's NFL teams do not use fullbacks as often as they once did, instead favoring spread offenses and dynamic passing attacks featuring three or more wide receivers and multiple tight ends. The real results of who touched it first is still undetermined to this day. The Steelers have always had great defensive playersand that hasn't changedbut the Steelers of today have fallen into the trendy traps of modern offenses with little use for a fullback. However, it's not too early to break down the best from the 2010s either. The Pittsburgh Steelers have had some great tight ends throughout the franchise's history. This was the age of the feature back, when one superstar halfback got most of the carries. Still, Bleier became a starter in the backfield with Harris and shined. Fuqua led the Steelers in rushing in 1970 and 1971 and totaled 2,942 yards on the ground during his time in Pittsburgh. Subscribe to Stathead Football: Get your first month FREEYour All-Access Ticket to the Pro Football Reference Database. For years, the Pittsburgh Steelers were considered a team that dominated with the run. This is a list of National Football League running backs by total career rushing yards, and includes the 31 running backs who have rushed for at least 10,000 yards, for which sixteen of them have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.. Emmitt Smith leads with 18,365 yards and is also the postseason leader with 1,586. Hopefully the Christmas edition of DraftKings top performers and busts finds you warm among family and friends as we unwrap the matchups in daily fantasy football for Week 16.The difficulty and uneasiness of lineup construction is increasing as more and more players we havent heard of become viable DFS starters in 2015s closing act.Use the list below to fill your roster with glad tidings while . This led to fans chanting Hey Diddle Diddle, Rogel Up the Middle. There was just one occasion that the Steelers failed to use Rogel on the games first play. At the time of the second injury, he was no longer with the Steelers but playing for the Chicago Bears and sued that teams doctor resulting in a $1.55 million judgment in favor of Hoge. In 2012 he was just a mere few yards away from the single-season rushing record with 2,097 yards. Hunt only played eight games with the Browns last season after serving an eight-game suspension. Hoak's record as the team's running backs coach was 149-90-1, making him the third-most successful running backs coach in Pittsburgh Steelers history. Yes, the Pittsburgh Steelers coach understands the symmetry between Saturday night's 13-10 win over the Las Vegas Raiders and a playoff victory over the same franchise 50 years ago, the one that ended with Steelers running back Franco Harris snagging a deflected . In 2015 Williams rejuvenated his career with the Steelers, filling in for the suspended and injured Le'Veon Bell for 10 games. Since the merger in 1970, the Pittsburgh Steelers have rushed for more yards than any other team in the National Football League, and this commitment got two of their running backs elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Prior to being drafted by the Army for service, Bleier was a University of Notre Dame product graduating in 1968 earning a degree in Business Management. TEAM SEASON GP REC W% W L T TD PTS PPG OPP PTS OPP PPG 1DWN 3DWN% 4DWN% Pittsburgh Steelers: 2013: 16: 8-8.500: 8: 8: 0: 41: 379 . He finished his career in Pittsburgh with 3,115 rushing yards, 241 receptions, and 34 total touchdowns. In nine seasons all as a Steeler, Pollard scored 20 touchdowns. The top photos of RB Le'Veon Bell throughout 2014 season. Frequently Asked Questions about the NFL and Football, Pro-Football-Reference.com Blog and Articles, Subscribe to Stathead Football: Get your first month FREE. With the 2019 season, there is still time to influence who lands where among a list of the best running backs of the decade. Jerome "The Bus" Bettis tops our list as the Steelers best running back of all time. It worked perfectly with the maulers he had in front of him in Pittsburgh as he has some Xbox like highlight reels to show for it. does st martin parish have school tomorrow. Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. Anderson was traded mid-season in 1986; he played four games for the Cardinals and eight for the Giants. While Gore has never led the league in rushing or made All-Pro, his consistency lands him at No. On a better team, Jones-Drew may have been able to flourish for longer than three seasons, but from 2009-11, he was one of the best backs in the league. All-time Rushing Leader: Franco Harris 2,881 att, 11,950 yds, 91 TD . Today, Abercrombie spends his days atsthe Executive Director for his alma mater leading the Baylor B Association which is an organization of previous letter winners for the university. With teams shifting more to the passing game, these old-school running backs are becoming obsolete. Dudley could do it all on the field as he was just not a back but a defensive back, punter, and place kicker. When running the ball, they often do so out of one-back sets and shotgun and pistol formations. He holds the team record for most rushing yards in a career (11,950) as well as most rushing touchdowns (91) and total touchdowns (100). Jerome Bettis was a 250-pound battering ram with incredible quickness for a man his size. If I were to ask you to name the sixth-leading rusher in Steelers history, I bet youd say a lot of names before you got to Frank Pollard. Fuqua will be forever remembered by Steelers fans as the intended receiver of Terry Bradshaws Immaculate Reception pass, which ricocheted into the arms of Franco Harris. Follow Holcomb on Twitter at @dmholcomb. Near the end of an uneventful rookie season, he was drafted to fight in the Vietnam War. He lasted just five seasons but they were filled with success. With the Bears and Jets, Forte posted 7,629 rushing yards and 11,353 yards from scrimmage from 2010-17. The trend in the modern NFL is to run the ball out of single-back sets, often from a shotgun or pistol formation. Murray is another back who put together three strong seasons during his career and led the league in rushing once. His rookie contract was voided after his fourth season, after just one in Pittsburgh, and there were opportunities to leave. If youve followed the Steelers, you've probably heard the term "Steelers Football." Join our linker program. Until recently, the fullback was an important player in the Steelers' offense. That one instance came in 1956 when Art Rooney Sr. uncharacteristically was frustrated with a head coach and instructed the then Head Coach Walt Kiesling to negate the opening Rogel rush and throw the ball instead. By 1974, Bleier was weighing in at 212 pounds and he made the team to stay. The official source for NFL news, video highlights, fantasy football, game-day coverage, schedules, stats, scores and more. The concussion was so bad that Hoge had to learn to read again and suffered from memory loss as well as encountering headaches and confusion. Overall, he ran for 4,731 yards and 28 touchdowns playing for the Rams, Falcons and Patriots from 2010-15. Franco Harris is the Pittsburgh Steelers career leader in rushing yards with 11,950. Twenty-three slots went by before the Pittsburgh Steelers selected Najee Harris in 2021. That meant Bell joined Marshall Faulk as the only players in NFL history with 1,350-plus yards rushing and 850-plus yards receiving in the same season. Standing 5-foot-11 and 195-pounds, Spears passes the . Today we ranked the Pittsburgh Steeler Running Backs throughout their franchise! Playing players out of position in mut will make there overall go down now. They got a lot of carries in an era when both the fullback and halfback needed to contribute to the running game. He would eventually become the feature back, but in 2009 he suffered Jack Lamberts injury, turf toe and was replaced by Rashard Mendenhall in the process. Maybe I am just nostalgic for the days when Steelers backs carried the ball 30 times and took total control over a game by the fourth quarter. Adrian Peterson is a running back with over thirteen years in the NFL. Last edited on 19 February 2023, at 18:43, Boston Braves / Boston Redskins / Washington Redskins, List of National Football League records (individual), List of National Football League rushing champions, List of National Football League career rushing touchdowns leaders, List of National Football League annual rushing touchdowns leaders, "NFL Rushing Yards Career Playoffs Leaders", "History of the Career Rushing Yards Record", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_National_Football_League_career_rushing_yards_leaders&oldid=1140354500, This page was last edited on 19 February 2023, at 18:43. He has held the all-time rushing yards record since 2002 and is the only player with over 17,000 regular season rushing yards. And that's with missing the 2016 season because of retirement. Franco Harris arrives during the 2019 Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. The team made it to the playoffs ten times ( 1992-1997 , 2001-2002 , 2004-2005 ) and had a 12-9 record under Coach Hoak in playoff games. In three of his four NFL seasons, Gurley has rushed for more than 1,100 yards and at least 10 touchdowns. Or write about sports? He's rushed for only 2,599 yards this decade, but everyone knows he's far more than just a running back.