Pittsburgh Steelers All-Time Team...Sort Of

Cowher thought so little of the guy when he took over the team in 1992 that he shipped the No. 15 overall pick to Washington for a seventh round pick, which was more than he expected anybody would give him for the guy he desperately wanted off his roster. 

How often does a team give up on a first round pick after one season?  Almost never. 

6. Ricardo Colclough. I was intrigued when the Steelers drafted small school prospect Colclough (pronounced "cokely") out of Tusculum in the second round of the 2004 draft. All of the draft guides said he was the best small school prospect in the draft and talked about him like he was the second coming of Mel Blount.

I was pumped. Until I saw him play. The lesson: Don't draft a player whose name isn’t pronounced anywhere close to how it is spelled.

His most memorable play was blocking a punt against the Bengals that he promptly mishandled and fumbled right back to them, letting them go on to win the game.  I'm not sure if the Bengals have won a game since.

7. Alonzo Jackson. The Steelers almost never miss when drafting a tweener defensive end they plan on converting to linebacker. The key word, though, is "almost".

Jackson was a rare miss, never able to make that transition except during the preseason, when he looked pretty good.

8. Dewayne Washington and Chad Scott. The toast twins get grouped together for this one.

The Steelers had some great defenses when Washington and Scott were in town, but it was not due to the skills of either of these guys.

Washington also gains points for making one of the biggest mistakes in Steelers' playoff history after giving the Titans' a second chance to kick a game winning field goal after he ran into the kicker.

One of the all-time great mysteries of the universe is the fact that, for some inexplicable reason, Deshea Townsend was stuck behind these two guys on the depth chart. They must have had some serious dirt on Cowher.

9. Mitch Berger. The Steelers won the Super Bowl in 2008 with the worst punter I’ve ever seen.

He averaged about twelve yards a punt, which after factoring in the fact that he lined up about ten yards behind center, meant that the Steelers netted about two yards of field position with each punt. 

Then again, at times he was a real weapon since his punts were so short that they would bounce off the helmets of unsuspecting opponents just running down the field looking for someone to block. 

The Steelers' 2008 defense was so good that it overcame a punter who couldn't net more than five yards per punt and an offense that was stuck in reverse through most of the season. 

These guys were constantly put in terrible situations, where they would promptly make a ridiculous game changing play.  I suspect it may very well have been the best defense in history, overcoming more than any other defense in leading a team to a championship.

10. Sean Mahan. The Steelers signed Mahan to a relatively sizable five-year $17 million contract to become their next stud center in 2007.

He was destined to follow in the giant footsteps of Mike Webster and Dermontti Dawson. Alas, he came up just a bit short of their proud legacies.

Mahan was the worst player on the Steelers’ weakest unit. He could hold off a defender for about .3 seconds when pass blocking, and only after blatantly grabbing that said defender.

And his average push while run blocking was measured in centimeters. The Steelers traded him to Tampa Bay in 2008 for a jug of Gatorade if I recall correctly. They definitely got the better end of that trade.

There you have it. That is my Steelers NOT all-time team. Who did I miss? Who did you have the most fun cursing at while watching your beloved black and gold warriors?

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?