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Consistency and Dominance

Discussion in 'Steelers Talk' started by Steelresolve, May 15, 2022.

  1. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

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    Name a NFL Franchise and the position at which they have been able to draft and develop talent consistently over the years like the Steelers have for the better part of four decades in some cases.

    I can’t think of a franchise that has been as fortunate in developing Linebackers like we have since the 70’s until the present time.

    We had the same type of dominance at Center up until recently. We have been pretty consistent with the WR’s for the last two decades. But going back to Linebackers, I have not seen any other franchise this consistent at any one position.

    70’s
    Lambert
    Ham
    Russell

    80’s
    Hinkle
    Little
    Merriweather

    90’s
    Nickerson
    Lloyd
    Greene
    Brown
    Bell
    Kirkland

    2000’s & 10’s
    Gildon
    Porter
    Farrior
    Foote

    2010’s & 20’s
    Shazier
    Harrison
    Timmons
    Woodley
    Watt
     
    Last edited: May 15, 2022
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  2. Mashburn

    Mashburn Well-Known Member

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    Bears had a good decade. But nothing like us.
     
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  3. Mashburn

    Mashburn Well-Known Member

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    Also want to say LB changed in the late 90's. Due to these bogus rule changes over time, as well as player protection. Pre 90's you had WR that were afraid to cross the middle of the field and if the QB was stupid enough to do it, then they better have green grass of 15 yards to run. Or else a LB would murder them.

    While now we have LB on duty to stay a pace with a TE.

    It upsets me of the new age football, sorry.
     
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  4. The Sodfather

    The Sodfather Well-Known Member

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    Not to be nit-picky but Kevin Greene James Farrior were not Steeler draft picks, the were free agents. Farrior from the Jets, Greene from the Rams.
     
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  5. Mashburn

    Mashburn Well-Known Member

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    Agreed.

    And add I'm sure you know, without those two it's insane how good we've drafted LB.
     
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  6. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    Seems nit-picky :smiley1:
     
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  7. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

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    Even so they had their best years with us. That is saying something.
     
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  8. AskQuestionsLater

    AskQuestionsLater Writing Team

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    :hmm:

    Since the 1970s?! I am game for sure!! :drinks:



    Minnesota Vikings Defensive Lineman (Carl Eller, Alan Page, John Randle, Chris Doleman, Keith Williams, Danielle Hunter)


    Minnesota Vikings WR Corps (Chris Carter, Randy Moss, Adam Thielen, Justin Jefferson)


    Chicago Bears Linebackers (Dick Butkus, Mike Singletary, Brian Urlacher, Roquan Smith)


    Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans Running Backs (Earl Campbell, Eddie George, Chris Johnson, Derrick Henry)


    Green Bay Packers QBs (Starr, Farve and Rodgers is absolutely insane)


    New York Giants EDGE Players (Leonard Marshall, Lawrence Taylor, Justin Tuck and Michael Strahan)


    Dallas Cowboys Running Backs (Tony Dorsett, Emmit Smith, Ezekiel Elliot)


    Pittsburgh's Own WRs (Swann, Stallworth, Lipps, Burress, Ward, Holmes, AB)


    San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers Tight Ends (Kellen Winslow Sr., Antonio Gates, Hunter Henry)


    San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers QBs (Dan Fouts, Philip Rivers, Justin Herbert)


    Denver Broncos EDGE Players (Simon Fletcher, Elvis Dumervil, Von Miller)


    Pittsburgh's Own Safeties (Donnie Shell, Carnell Lake, Troy Polamalu, Minkah Fitzpatrick)





    This is more or less what I have currently. Also have the likes of the LA Rams Offensives Tackles, LA Rams Defensive Lineman, San Francisco 49ers WR Corps, and the Seattle Seahawks CBs (people tend to forget about Dave Brown who was a Steelers 1st Round Pick who had to be ceded away due to the expansion draft) but the above is, more or less, teams that have comparable forms of success at specific positions in the same vein the Steelers have had in Linebackers.



    Just my two cents.
     
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  9. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    That is a great list. One small quibble. Leonard Marshall wasn't really an edge rusher. He was an end in a 3-4 for the Giants. The edge rushers were the outside linebackers. He and Lawrence Taylor were often lined up on the same side. Imagine trying to block those two! I say often because they moved Taylor around quite a bit.
     
  10. AskQuestionsLater

    AskQuestionsLater Writing Team

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    Forgot the Green Bay Packers WR Corps as well... something I cannot believe. How so?! Two words.


    Don.


    Hudson
    .



    Arguably the most influential player in League History. Thanks to him, the Wide Receiver position became its own entity during the 40s onward.
     
  11. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    joe greene, dwight white, lc greenwood, ernie holmes. i think these guys were pretty good. :smiley1::cool:
     
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  12. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    Who ;)
     
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  13. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    4 guys from small colleges that made the team. north texas, texas a&m commerce, U of arkansas at pine bluff, texas southern university. they played against sub par competition. scrubs. :smiley1:;):cool:
     
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  14. CK 13

    CK 13 Well-Known Member

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    On a side note that jackass Doug Whaley (who has interviewed for the GM position) said that Jack Ham would be a special teams BACKUP in
    todays NFL :roflmao:

    Guess he won't be sniffing a GM position with the Steelers. Dope.
     
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  15. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    I truly hope the Steelers aren't dumb enough to make their decision about a GM based on the guy's evaluation of a player who retired when Whaley was 10 years old. Sure, it's a dumb take, but I think the Steelers know enough about Whaley by now that something like that isn't going to be a factor. Remember, Whaley was an executive with the Steelers for 10 years before he took the GM job with the Bills. He is also a Pittsburgh native who played his college ball at Pitt, so they should know him very well.
     
  16. CK 13

    CK 13 Well-Known Member

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    When your looking at a talent evaluator that's going to be drafting and bringing in free agents for the team and looks at a special player technically sound in every way and has some dumb take like that I would be a bit reserved. Not that it would be a deal breaker but it should considered.
     
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  17. HeinzMustard

    HeinzMustard Well-Known Member

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    GM needs to be wise. We were spoiled with Colbert. With that said, it's great that Cowher and Colbert wanted to draft Andrews OT and the Rooneys said hell no in '04.
     
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  18. Thigpen82

    Thigpen82 Bitter optimist

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    You can add Lynn Dickey and Don Majkowski. Packers have done really well in QBs
     
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  19. Blast Furnace

    Blast Furnace Staff Member Mod Team

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    Agreed. There probably isn’t a lot separating some of these candidates and that’s when things like this come into play that could help whittle down the list.

    I think he was likely out of the running already but as a business owner myself, if I’m trying to decide between who to hire and I hear a dumb opinion like that, it’s going to carry weight in my decision.

    Not only is it a bad take by Whaley just on a talent level of Ham but it ignores that even in todays league there are successful players at his size. Plus if Ham were playing today they would have packed more weight onto him.
     
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  20. mac daddyo

    mac daddyo Well-Known Member

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    i don't think he meant anything bad about it. it is true that the size and training regiment in athletes today as opposed to then is an enormous difference. the heart and talent hammy had would still go a long way. how these kids would deal with the rules then as opposed to now may take some of that heart out of them. forearms to the chin, head slaps, spearing on tackles, o-linemen not allowed to use their hands outside were quite a difference. it gave the defense a bigger advantage then as opposed to now. now the rules have strapped the defense quite a bit. :cool:
     
  21. jeh1856

    jeh1856 Beer is good

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    I’ve had as many as 800 people working for me and although I didn’t specifically interview all of them the ones I did I read between the lines on their resume/application

    Particularly email addresses

    I had one young lady tell me how dependable she was and her email address was “party girl”

    She was a no
     
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  22. Formerscribe

    Formerscribe Well-Known Member

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    Based on that comment, if I want to go back and build a team using players from the 1970s, I don't want Doug Whaley. :shrug:
     
  23. blackandgoldpatrol

    blackandgoldpatrol Well-Known Member

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    Good list with notable omissions....

    70's: Robin Cole
    90's: Chad Brown.... (Also, we didn't draft Greene)
     
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  24. Steelresolve

    Steelresolve Well-Known Member

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    Your right I missed on Cole. Brown was in there for the 90’s. I know we didn’t draft Greene nor Farrior but they were an integral part of our teams and they had their best years here.
     
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