5 greatest Steelers wide receivers in franchise history
The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the most legendary franchises in NFL history. Here are their top five wide receivers of all-time.
No team has been more dominant than our Steelers since 1970. They acquired a league-leading 6 super bowl wins in that span, while fielding a ton of Hall-of-Famers. Even as Pittsburgh’s history shows a lot of dominant defenses and predominantly run-first offenses, Ben Roethlisberger helped to usher in a new playstyle for the Steelers’ offense. It has turned into an offense that has seen Ben average roughly 40 attempts per game in 2020.
Having a hall of fame quarterback can do that for an offense. Yet, being able to draft wide receivers better than any other team in the NFL in the last 12 years has also helped shape this offense. They have tooled their offensive line to be one of the better pass-blocking units of the league for the last decade, all while relying on Ben’s somewhat fearless style to open up the offense.
With such a great stable of receivers in 2020, we can take a look back to the greatest receivers in franchise history. It won’t be about just statistics. As one player will make this list on the coattails of possibly the greatest catch in Super Bowl history. But first, an honorable mention that has the potential to find himself on this list 10 years from now.
JuJu Smith-Schuster (honorable mention)
Statistically, JuJu is already a top 10 receiver all-time for the Steelers at just 24 years old. The 1-time Pro Bowler is 6th in franchise history in receptions among wide receivers, 11th in receiving yards among wide receivers, 11th in receiving touchdowns among wide receivers, and is the holder of the two longest receptions in franchise history, both being 97 yards. They are also the two longest offensive plays by a Steeler since 1949.
His ability to crack the top 5 will come down to whether he signs an extension with the Steelers and when Ben retires. It will also matter, who Ben’s replacement ends up being down the line. It is hard to think that a player in his 4th season with the Steelers is already among the best receivers in franchise history statistically. With him being so young, as long as his quarterback is a relevant passer in the NFL, there is no reason to believe he couldn’t climb up these rankings after doing all of this by the time he turned just 24.
While he is an honorable mention based on his potential and blazing hot start to his career he isn’t there yet. Now is where the rest of the list starts: