The 10 Best Steelers Players of All Time, Ranked

Heavy on Steelers

It would not be a particularly controversial statement to say that the Pittsburgh Steelers are the most storied franchise in football, certainly since the NFL common era.

From a four-win Super Bowl dynasty in the 1970s to what has become the league’s longest streak without a losing season, the Steelers are the epitome of toughness, grit and stability. And, of course, a completely devoted fanbase.

With that in mind, let’s see who makes the list of Pittsburgh’s top 10 greatest players.

10. Cameron Heyward, DT

GettySteelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward.

• Years as a Steeler: 2011 – present
• Championships & awards:
  • 3-time First Team All-Pro (2017, 2019, 2021)
  • Second Team All-Pro (2020)
  • 6-time Pro Bowl (2017-2022)
  • NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year (2023)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 200 games (165 starts)
  • 672 total tackles
  • 125 tackles for loss
  • 83.5 sacks
  • 8 forced fumbles
  • 2 INTs
  • 7 fumble recoveries
• Career postseason stats:
  • 8 games (7 starts)
  • 19 total tackles
  • 2 tackles for loss
  • 1 sack
  • 2 forced fumbles
• Iconic performance: November 8, 2021, against the Chicago Bears, Heyward succeeded in picking off QB Justin Fields from almost impossibly close range for a pivotal play in a closely fought 29-27 win in Pittsburgh.

Cameron Heyward may not possess something that is widely held amongst members of this list: a Super Bowl trophy. However, now into his 14th year of service in a Steeler outfit, it is undebatable that the Ohio State alum is one of the best defensive linemen in Pittsburgh’s illustrious history. Second behind just former Defensive Player of the Year, TJ Watt on the Steelers’ all time sack list, Heyward has been one of the most consistent interior defensive lineman over the past decade-and-a-half, even if that has not translated into postseason success.

9. Alan Faneca, G

GettyFormer Steelers guard Alan Faneca.

• Years as a Steeler: 1998 – 2007
• Championships & awards:
  • 6-time First Team All-Pro (2001-2002,2004-2007)
  • Second Team All-Pro (2003)
  • 7-time Pro Bowl (2001-2007)
  • Super Bowl champion (2005)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 158 games (153 starts)
  • 8 fumble recoveries
• Career postseason stats:
  • 11 starts
• Iconic performance: December 21, 2007 @ St. Louis Rams. Dominant offensive line performances often go under the radar relative to their offensive counterparts, but Alan Faneca led a ruthless display of power at the point of attack, ultimately leading to quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s perfect passer rating in a convincing 41-23 win.

All-time football encyclopedia Brian Baldinger calls Faneca the “greatest pulling guard of all time. And in a world now dominated by the outside run, “wide zone” running scheme by the Kyle Shanahan coaching tree, it is no doubt that Faneca’s mobility as an interior offensive lineman sets him apart from his contemporaries as a pioneer of the position. The eventual 9-time Pro Bowler protected prize quarterbacking asset Ben Roethlisberger as the Steelers found glory in the 2005 Super Bowl.

8. Rod Woodson, DB

GettyRod Woodson poses with his bust at his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009.

• Years as a Steeler: 1987 – 1996
• Championships & awards:
  • NFL Defensive Player of the Year (1993)
  • 5-time First Team All-Pro (1989-1990,1992-1994)
  • 2-time Second Team All-Pro (1991,1996)
  • 7-time Pro Bowl (1989-1994,1996)
  • NFL 1990s All-Decade Team
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame (2009)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 134 games (125 starts)
  • 671 total tackles
  • 13.5 sacks
  • 16 forced fumbles
  • 38 INTs
  • 21 fumble recoveries
  • 6 defensive touchdowns
• Career postseason stats:
  • 8 games (7 starts)
  • 19 total tackles
  • 1 INT
• Iconic performance: October 17, 1993, against the New Orleans Saints. Woodson intercepted Saints quarterback Wade Wilson twice in back-to-back opening drives, en route to winning the 1993 Defensive Player of the Year award.

Rod Woodson is yet another member of this list who never managed to hoist a Lombardi Trophy in Pittsburgh, although he did put together a highly impressive performance in the 1996 Super Bowl in which he shut down Hall of Fame Cowboys receiver Michael Irvin despite ultimately losing 27-17 to “America’s Team.” One of the league’s greatest ever ball-hawks was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2009, and eventually managed to achieve that elusive Super Bowl victory with the Baltimore Ravens in 2000.

7. Jack Lambert, LB

Wikimedia CommonsFormer Steelers LB Jack Lambert in 1981.

• Years as a Steeler: 1974-1984
• Championships & awards:
  • NFL Defensive Player of the Year (1976)
  • NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year (1974)
  • 6-time First Team All-Pro (1976, 1979-1983)
  • 2-time Second Team All-Pro (1975,1978)
  • 9-time Pro Bowl (1975-1983)
  • 4-time Super Bowl champion (1974, 1975, 1978,1979)
  • NFL 1970s All-Decade Team
  • NFL 1980s All-Decade Team
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame (1990)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 146 games (138 starts)
  • 1441 total tackles
  • 23.5 sacks
  • 16 forced fumbles
  • 28 INTs
  • 17 fumble recoveries
• Career postseason stats:
  • 18 games (17 starts)
  • 23 total tackles
  • 1 INT
  • 3 fumble recoveries
• Iconic performance: January 20, 1980, against the Los Angeles Rams. Lambert cut off a Ron Smith rout to pick off Rams QB Vince Ferragamo and set up a game-sealing touchdown drive from Terry Bradshaw.

Jack Lambert, considered by many to be the toughest, scariest, and for some even the greatest middle linebacker of all time, could have been even higher on this list, were it not for a career-ending toe injury that forced him to retire after the 1984 season. Stacking up four Lombardi trophies at the height of the Steelers dynasty, Lambert embodies the old-school, hard-hitting linebacker that headlined Pittsburgh’s famously stingy “Steel Curtain” defense throughout the 1970s.

6. Franco Harris

GettyHall of Famer Franco Harris speaks during round one of the 2022 NFL Draft.

• Years as a Steeler: 1972-1983
• Championships & awards:
  • NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year (1972)
  • First Team All-Pro (1977)
  • 2-time Second Team All-Pro (1972,1975)
  • 9-time Pro Bowl (1972-1980)
  • 4-time Super Bowl champion (1974, 1975, 1978,1979)
  • Super Bowl MVP (1974)
  • NFL Man of the Year (1977)
  • NFL 1970s All-Decade Team
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame (1990)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 165 games (156 starts)
  • 2881 carries
  • 11950 yards
  • 91 rushing touchdowns
  • 306 catches
  • 2284 receiving yards
  • 9 receiving touchdowns
• Career postseason stats:
  • 19 starts
  • 400 carries
  • 1556 rushing yards
  • 16 rushing touchdowns
  • 51 receptions
  • 504 yards
  • 1 receiving touchdown
• Iconic performance: December 23, 1972, against the Oakland Raiders. Franco made one of the most famous plays of all time in the “Immaculate Reception,” where — with only seconds left in the game — he caught a pass that had ricocheted off of Raiders safety Jack Tatum and ran in for a game-winning touchdown.

Best known for the aforementioned “Immaculate Reception,” Franco Harris is in a two-way battle against fellow Hall of Famer, Jerome Bettis, for greatest running back in Steelers history. In this instance, we’ve gone for Harris, the powerful fullback who still owns franchise records in carries, yards and rushing touchdowns, who ultimately helped drive the Steelers to victory in four Super Bowls.

5. Troy Polamalu, DB

GettyFormer Steelers DB Troy Polamalu.

• Years as a Steeler: 2003 – 2014
• Championships & awards:
  • NFL Defensive Player of the Year (2010)
  • 4-time First Team All-Pro (2005, 2008, 2010-2011)
  • 2-time Second Team All-Pro (2004, 2007)
  • 8-time Pro Bowl (2004-2008, 2010, 2011, 2013)
  • 2-time Super Bowl champion (2005, 2008)
  • NFL 2000s All-Decade Team
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame (2020)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 158 games (142 starts)
  • 783 total tackles
  • 12 sacks
  • 14 forced fumbles
  • 32 INTs
  • 7 fumble recoveries
  • 5 defensive touchdowns
• Career postseason stats:
  • 8 games (7 starts)
  • 19 total tackles
  • 1 INT
• Iconic performance: September 19, 2010, against the Tennessee Titans. Polamalu’s unprecedented trademark jump over the line of scrimmage to tackle the quarterback, in a display of sheer athleticism and power, was best exemplified in this goal line stoppage of QB, Kerry Collins.

Troy Polamalu, along with rival Baltimore Ravens’ Ed Reed, ushered in a new era of hard-hitting, powerful, yet ultra-athletic safety play that dominated the beginning of the 21st century. A two-time Super Bowl winner that was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility, Polamalu was one of the first true all around game-changing safeties, whose mark can still be seen on the modern game.

4. Ben Roethlisberger, QB

GettyFormer Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger.

• Years as a Steeler: 2004-2021
• Championships & awards:
  • NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year (2004)
  • 6-time Pro Bowl (2007, 2011, 2014-2017)
  • 2-time NFL Passing Yards Leader (2014, 2018)
  • 2-time Super Bowl champion (2004, 2008)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 249 games (247 starts)
  • 165-81-1 record
  • 64.4% completion percentage
  • 64,088 passing yards
  • 418 passing touchdowns
  • 211 INTs
  • 1,373 rushing yards
  • 20 rushing touchdowns
• Career postseason stats:
  • 23 starts
  • 13-10 record
  • 63.2% completion percentage
  • 5972 passing yards
  • 36 passing touchdowns
  • 28 INTs
  • 245 rushing yards
  • 3 rushing touchdowns
• Iconic performance: November 2, 2014, where “Big Ben” threw for an astounding 6 touchdowns in a 340 yard game against divisional rivals, the Baltimore Ravens.

Many chastise Ben Roethlisberger for being perhaps not the hardest worker in the dressing room, yet his almost 2 decade legacy to the organization is irrefutable. Known for being the king of “backyard football,” the future Hall of Famer lead the Steelers to the final 2 of what was at the time an NFL-leading six Super Bowls (now tied by the New England Patriots) and was the face of the franchise for 18 years.

3. Mel Blount, DB

Wikimedia CommonsPro Football Hall of Fame member Mel Blount.

• Years as a Steeler: 1970-1983
• Championships & awards:
  • NFL Defensive Player of the Year (1975)
  • 2-time First Team All-Pro (1975,1981)
  • 4-time Second Team All-Pro (1975,1979)
  • 5-time Pro Bowl (1975,)
  • NFL interceptions leader (1975)
  • 4-time Super Bowl champion (1974, 1975, 1978,1979)
  • NFL 1980s All-Decade Team
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame (1989)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 200 games (189 starts)
  • 0.5 sacks
  • 57 INTs
  • 13 fumble recoveries
  • 4 defensive touchdowns
• Career postseason stats:
  • 19 starts
  • 4 INTs
• Iconic performance: December 10, 1977, against the Cincinnati Bengals. The game ended up being a main driver toward the implementation of the “Mel Blount Rule,” after Blount unintentionally broke a receiver’s jaw in his aggressive pass coverage.

Mel Blount, often regarded as one of the greatest cornerbacks to ever play – period, was the most feared cornerback in the game in the 1970s and ’80s due to his aggressive, sticky man-to-man coverage. His work later became the catalyst for the “Mel Blount Rule,” brought into the NFL in 1978, and helped the Steelers in their Steel Curtain dynasty of the 70s.

2. Terry Bradshaw

GettyRetired Steelers quarterback Terry Bradshaw.

• Years as a Steeler: 1970-1983
• Championships & awards:
  • NFL MVP (1978)
  • NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year (2004)
  • First Team All-Pro (1978)
  • 3-time Pro Bowl (1975, 1978-79)
  • 2-time NFL Passing Touchdowns Leader (1978,1982)
  • 4-time Super Bowl champion (1974, 1975, 1978,1979)
  • 2-time Super Bowl MVP (1978,1979)
  • NFL 1970s All-Decade Team
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame (1989)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 168 games (158 starts)
  • 107-51 record
  • 51.9% completion percentage
  • 27,989 passing yards
  • 212 passing touchdowns
  • 210 INTs
  • 2257 rushing yards
  • 32 rushing touchdowns
• Career postseason stats:
  • 19 starts
  • 14-5 record
  • 57.2% completion percentage
  • 3833 passing yards
  • 30 passing touchdowns
  • 26 INTs
  • 274 rushing yards
  • 3 rushing touchdowns
• Iconic performance: January 18, 1978, against the Dallas Cowboys, where Bradshaw hit a dime to wideout Lynn Swan in a 64 yard touchdown in the fourth quarter that put a lid on 14 answered Steeler points to win the 1976 Super Bowl.

Don’t let Bradshaw’s perhaps underwhelming seeming statistics deceive you; he is without question of the best quarterbacks of NFL era. Despite some growing pains to start his career, including some erratic, interception heavy spells, Bradshaw fought off internal competition to secure his spot in the lineup, and ultimately guided Pittsburgh to their first 4 Lombardi trophies

1. ‘Mean’ Joe Greene, DT

GettyFormer Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman “Mean” Joe Greene speaks during the first round of the 2019 NFL Draft.

• Years as a Steeler: 1969 – 1981
• Championships & awards:
  • 2-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year (1972,1974)
  • NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year (1969)
  • 5-time First Team All-Pro (1972-1974,1977,1979)
  • 3-time Second Team All-Pro (1971,1975,1976)
  • 10-time Pro Bowl (1969-1976,1978,1979)
  • 4-time Super Bowl champion (1974, 1975, 1978,1979)
  • NFL 1970s All-Decade Team
  • NFL Man of the Year (1979)
• Career regular season stats:
  • 181 games (172 starts)
  • 77.5 sacks
  • 1 INT
  • 16 fumble recoveries
• Career postseason stats:
  • 17 starts
  • 7 sacks
  • 1 INT
  • 2 fumble recoveries
• Iconic performance: January 12, 1975, against the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IX, where Greene recorded a forced fumble, fumble recovery and an interception, in a 16-6 win.

Joe Greene, nicknamed “Mean” due his being, well – not fun play against, is one of the most disruptive internal defensive lineman in the history of the National Football League, rivaled by perhaps only Reggie White and Aaron Donald. Greene helped turn around what was once one of the worst franchises in the NFL, and helped surmount it to its current immense stature. His “lead from the front” mentality embodied the Steeler way, and he is truly the greatest Pittsburgh Steeler of all time.

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