5 Steelers who were the best in the NFL at their position at one point

CB Mel Blount

One freak athlete to another, if nicknames still standing to this day, don’t earn the respect of being one of the five members on this list, how about a rule that has completely changed the course of the game. The “Mel Blount” rule.

In 1978, the NFL implemented the five-yard bump rule, not allowing defenders to draw contact to receivers past five yards from the line of scrimmage. Mainly in part due to, Steelers CB Mel Blount, and as reported by Bryan Deardo of 247Sports.com:

"“Don Shula, the head of the NFL’s Competition Committee, thought that the NFL needed a facelift and that making passing a more intricate part of the game was just the tonic it needed (the Steelers argued that Shula wanted to neutralize the Steelers’ defense, which had shut out five opponents in a nine-game span in 1976). “"

The 6’3, towering cornerback with all the intangibles of size, speed, and strength, played with a physicality that allowed virtually no success for opposing players. In 1975, the gates opened & flooded Blount with achievements.

The first of his five Pro-Bowl trips and voted to the All-Pro First-Team would also make his mark being selected as the NFL Defensive Player of the Year, leading the league with a career-high 11 interceptions. The most in a single-season in franchise history as well, Blount’s coverage ability was head and shoulders better than anyone else’s at the time that led to a Hall-of-Fame induction.