1. Hi Guest, Registrations are now open. See you on the inside.
    Dismiss Notice

Top Ten Steelers WR All Time

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by Steelresolve, May 9, 2022.

  1. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

    1,211
    447
    Apr 16, 2022
    I Like your list too. The reason I chose to put Ward first was because of what he embodied as an overall player. Swann and Stallworth were great but to me Ward did more with less at QB. Ward set the tone. He was a leader and his blocking was an element that often gets overlooked. I couldn’t put Swann up that high simply because of the length of his career. To me Brown was obviously the most talented and he was dominant for five years but what did the team do over this five years. How did he impact the players around him? I just have a hard time getting past his character. The guy was gonna be a shoe in to be a HOFer and he threw it ll away. I like Randle El as # 10.
     
    • Like Like x 2
    • Disagree Disagree x 1
    • Hilarious Hilarious x 1
  2. Karl

    Karl Well-Known Member

    1,809
    1,279
    Jan 19, 2022
    John Stallworth gets my #1 vote. Tough as nails...
    Swann could make those highlight film catches and, in an era, where Jack Tatum was looking to knock your head off. (As was Stallworth.)
    Antonio Brown had it all... what a shame.
    Then there's all the other names mentioned.

    For old timers.... Buddy Dial. :)
     
  3. TuRnDoWnForWaTT

    TuRnDoWnForWaTT Well-Known Member

    7,705
    2,997
    Jan 1, 2018
    Since no criteria was given, my list will be a total package list. A combination of stats, Super Bowl success, longevity, talent, and what each player meant to the Steelers, and the City of Pittsburgh, will all be used to evaluate the players. That being said here is my list.

    Hines Ward - If you consider all the factors I listed above this is a no brainer
    John Stallworth - See Above
    Antonio Brown - On a list that only takes into account skill/stats, AB is clearly #1 (Honestly the best I have ever watched besides Jerry Rice)
    Lynn Swann - would certainly be higher if not for longevity/stats
    Louis Lipps - No Super Bowl success, but if you grew up in the 80's like I did, this was the only legit superstar the Steelers had.
    Santonio Holmes - Similar stats as those behind him, the Super Bowl MVP sets him apart.
    Yancey Thigpen - He and Wallace each had a Super bowl appearance and similar stats. Yancey was a more complete receiver IMO
    Mike Wallace - See above
    Plaxico Burress - Similar stats to the 3 above, but no Super Bowl combined with being a knucklehead at times drops him to 9.
    Diontae Johnson - Very quietly has been part of two playoff runs, and is compiling some nice stats. Will pass most of those above him in 2022
     
    Last edited: May 10, 2022
    • Like Like x 3
  4. S.T.D

    S.T.D Well-Known Member

    29,860
    7,882
    Dec 23, 2020
    No ....I don't even hate the guy, but have you forgotten that while on this team .....with 6 other Qbs....Brown disappeared....not a single TD, and only one 100 yard game.
    Also Ward was on a run 1st team His entire career....even during Ben's early years.
    When AB got here We had changed.
     
    Last edited: May 10, 2022
    • Agree Agree x 1
    • Disagree Disagree x 1
  5. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

    21,059
    3,498
    Dec 18, 2016
    Among the few things more ridiculous than judging a quarterback by his team's record is judging a wide receiver by his team's record.
     
    • Agree Agree x 2
  6. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

    21,059
    3,498
    Dec 18, 2016
    The league had changed, yet Brown was the best receiver in the game for at least five years. Ward was never considered the best in the game. He wasn't even close.
    Trying to discount Brown based on a handful of games, including the ones with Michael Vick ...um...I guess you can call it throwing....sorry, but no.
     
    • Like Like x 1
    • Winner Winner x 1
  7. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

    1,211
    447
    Apr 16, 2022
    You have it all wrong. That is the foundational stat by which all players are judged. That is why people today still rank Bradshaw ahead of Ben. Ward was a winner. Brown was a whiner.
     
    • Disagree Disagree x 1
    • Winner Winner x 1
  8. Steelers4tim

    Steelers4tim Well-Known Member

    85
    32
    Mar 27, 2022


    I agree with this listing completely. Ward's blocking and his ability to put fear into the minds of a DEFENSE is the tiebreaker with Stallworth & Brown...someone could be immortal and watch football for the next 800 years and never see a better blocking WR than Hines Ward. When you're a WR and you sometimes make defensive players have to eat their food through straws, you get lots of votes as #1 in a city like Pittsburgh!


    #firetomlin
     
    • Like Like x 2
    • Agree Agree x 1
  9. kakhatesmortgages66

    kakhatesmortgages66 Well-Known Member

    926
    546
    Apr 16, 2020


    10. Weegie Thompson. Lock thread!
     
    • Like Like x 2
  10. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

    21,059
    3,498
    Dec 18, 2016
    Ward played on winners. There is a difference. Wide receivers don't have nearly enough control over the games to make your point of view make sense.

    Take Brown's last playoff appearance with the Steelers as an example. He caught seven passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns. By your logic, that is somehow his fault that they lost that game, not Roethlisberger for the early turnovers or the defense for being unable to handle Blake Bortles.
     
    • Winner Winner x 1
  11. D0bre Shunka

    D0bre Shunka Well-Known Member

    3,275
    434
    Jan 24, 2012
    Swann
    Stallworth
    Ward
    Brown
    Holmes

    Fill in whoever you like at any given time for the last 5.
     
    • Like Like x 2
  12. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

    1,211
    447
    Apr 16, 2022
    Thats a bad example. Those were garbage yards when there defense was playing conservative to preserve a lead. With Brown he didn’t have the intangibles the make a great leader or teammate. You can’t quantify those things and the importance they bring to a team. Sure Brown was more talented than Ward but that wasn’t what the ratings were about. You have your opinion and your entitled to it. Mine is just different. There is no right or wrong here.
     
    • Disagree Disagree x 1
  13. Disco1981

    Disco1981 Well-Known Member

    5,508
    1,764
    Mar 20, 2017
    Almost a perfect list...Just add Jefferson
     
  14. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

    21,059
    3,498
    Dec 18, 2016
    It's not a bad example at all. The Steelers still had life into the fourth quarter of that game in part because Brown made some spectacular plays.

    When we get to the part of a discussion where someone brings up intangibles, it usually means they just like that guy better and won't hear anything else.

    Brown wasn't just more talented than Ward. He was better. It wasn't close. So yeah, there is a right and popular. You chose popular. I chose right.
     
  15. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

    26,991
    10,034
    Oct 26, 2011
    No

    Bradshaw is ranked ahead of Ben because he was much better
     
    • Like Like x 1
  16. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

    1,211
    447
    Apr 16, 2022
    Ok how about all fo the QB’s who are more physically gifted than Brady? Does that make them better QB’s? Ben is more physically gifted than Brady. Ben had a stronger arm, he was bigger, stronger, faster but he was not the better QB. Ben didn’t have the intangibles that Brady had. I view it as which player would you build your team around. To me I would much rather build a team around Ward than Brown. In the end who was more reliable? Who had the better stats overall? Sure Brown was dominant over a short time period but his mental makeup didn’t allow him to sustain it and he became a detriment to whatever team he was on. Your only looking at the physical instead of the whole person.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  17. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

    1,211
    447
    Apr 16, 2022
    You state it as if it is a fact. I believe Ben is better than Bradshaw.
     
    • Like Like x 1
    • Disagree Disagree x 1
  18. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

    26,991
    10,034
    Oct 26, 2011
    And people believe the world is flat

    We invite all types to this fine establishment
     
    Last edited: May 11, 2022
    • Dislike Dislike x 1
  19. Hanratty#5

    Hanratty#5 Well-Known Member

    5,763
    3,061
    Apr 20, 2019
    In my opinion when both Ben and Bradshaw were at their peak, I thought Bradshaw was a little bit better. What Ben has in his favor is that he was really good right from the start and kept it up for 15+ years. It took Bradshaw around 5 years to hit his stride and he only played 8 full seasons. So for longevity I would pick Ben but if you had one game to win it would be Bradshaw.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  20. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

    1,211
    447
    Apr 16, 2022
    Bradshaws teams were loaded. Bradshaw never really put up the stats that Ben did but it is really hard to compare them based on the different era’s. The DB’s got away with a lot more during Bradshaws time. I just feel like Bradshaw was Favre before Favre... a gunslinger. Ben was a gunslinger as well to degree but he also had the ability to improvise and scramble to keep the play alive. I feel like Ben was more of a rhythm passer and when he was locked in nobody was better. For one game and one final drive to win it all...my money is on Ben. He already proved it in the super bowl winning drive against Arizona.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  21. Steelers4tim

    Steelers4tim Well-Known Member

    85
    32
    Mar 27, 2022

    I find it VERY interesting that not one person has mentioned that #12 had the luxury of being coached by the Emperor while #7 was hamstrung with Mike Dumblin...carry on.


    #firetomlin
     
    • Like Like x 1
  22. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

    21,059
    3,498
    Dec 18, 2016
    I reject your premise as inaccurate. I'm looking at the production, not the physical gifts. There is a big difference.

    When it comes to intangibles, I'm sorry, but you weren't in that locker room. You don't have the information to judge that. I was in the locker room a few times when Ward was there, but I don't have enough information to judge that, either.

    I'll stick to what we actually know, which is the players they were on the field. In that arena, only one of them was ever considered the best in the game at his position and that was Brown.
     
  23. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

    21,059
    3,498
    Dec 18, 2016
    Noll was one of the greatest coaches of all time, but he clearly had no idea how to handle Bradshaw for years.
     
    • Agree Agree x 2
  24. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

    1,211
    447
    Apr 16, 2022
    I don’t believe you have to be in the locker room to see the effect ones character has on the team. It is pretty obvious Brown had some major character flaws. You are only look at part of the production, are you looking at leadership, blocking, setting the tone, etc.? We just have different opinions. There is no right or wrong here. You have to understand I look at this as which receiver was best FOR THE STEELERS. No Doubt from a pure receiving perspective Brown was clearly better than Ward. But in my opinion for the Steelers overall Ward was a better for them. I will take a selfless player who exhibits leadership, intimidation and is more well rounded while also having solid production over diva any day. In fact I wonder at times did Brown hurt us. I feel like Ben sometimes forced it to Brown to much and as a result was the counterproductive?
     
    • Agree Agree x 1
    • Disagree Disagree x 1
  25. santeesteel

    santeesteel

    11,713
    3,094
    Oct 17, 2011
    Ju Ju needs to be on the list, if for nothing more than the hit he put on Burfict!
     
    • Like Like x 2

Share This Page

Welcome to the ultimate resource for Steelers fans. Sign Up Here!