The Pittsburgh Steelers have been hit and miss the last 30 years at QB
I have been watching Steelers’ football for the last thirty years. Here is how I rank the QBs over that time frame from 1980-2010:
1.) Ben Roethlisberger: Roethlisberger is easily the best QB the Steelers have had since 1980. In fact I think he is the best QB in team history already. He has played in 87 games with the Steelers and he has completed 1,526 of 2,411 passes (63.3%) for 19,302 yards with 127 TD passes and 81 INTs (91.7 QB Rating). He has also carried the ball 228 times for 698 yards (3.1 ypc) with 12 TD runs. He has already led the Steelers to 2 Super Bowl wins in his career.
2.) Neil O’Donnell: I know that this is going to cause some Steelers’ fans to drill me as I’m picking him ahead of Terry Bradshaw. But, keep in mind the time frame (1980-2010). O’Donnell played in 66 games (61 starts) for the Steelers and he completed 1,069 of 1,871 passes (57.1%) for 12,867 yards with 68 TD passes and 39 INTs (81.8 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 126 times for 323 yards (2.6 ypc) with 3 TD runs in his career with the Steelers. O’Donnell led the Steelers to a 39-22 record during the regular season and he led them to a Super Bowl that they lost against the Cowboys.
3.) Terry Bradshaw: Bradshaw was still a decent QB in the 1980’s but for only a short time before he had to retire. He played in 39 games (all starts) for the Steelers in the 80’s and he completed 551 of 1,042 passes (52.9%) for 8,071 yards with 65 TD passes and 47 INTs. He also carried the ball 83 times for 286 yards (3.4 ypc) with 4 TD runs for the Steelers. While he is a Hall of Fame QB that led the Steelers to 4 Super Bowl wins in the 1970’s he only ranks third on this list.
4.) Tommy Maddox: Tommy Maddox sent a letter to every NFL team trying to get a tryout after the XFL was disbanded. The Steelers were the only team to give him a chance and he ran with it. Maddox played in 43 games (32 starts) for the Steelers and he completed 603 of 1,036 passes (58.2%) for 7,139 yards with 42 TD passes and 40 INTs (76.7 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 55 times for 105 yards (1.9 ypc) with 1 TD run for the Steelers. His injury opened the door for Ben Roethlisberger who was backing him up.
5.) Kordell Stewart: The QB formerly known as Slash in more ways than one (Schenley Park). Stewart played in 114 games (80 starts) for the Steelers in his career playing many of those at WR. He led the Steelers to a 46-29 record as a starting QB. Stewart completed 1,190 of 2,107 passes (56.5%) for 13,328 yards with 70 TD passes and 72 INTs (72.3 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 496 times for 2,561 yards (5.2 ypc) with 35 TD runs and he also caught 41 passes for 658 yards (16.0 avg) with 5 TD grabs. Stewart was a decent QB despite having some sugar in his shoes.
6.) Bubby Brister: Bubby Brister was pretty bad as the QB of the Steelers but he is good enough to rank this high. Brister played in 61 games (57 starts) for the Steelers and he compiled a 28-29 record as a starter. He completed 776 of 1,477 passes (52.5%) for 10,104 yards with 51 TD passes and 57 INTs (69.8 QB Rating). Brister also carried the ball 124 times for 341 yards (2.8 ypc) with 7 TD carries. The thing I remember the most about Bubby Brister is that they kept showing his mom on T.V. for some ungodly reason.
7.) Mike Tomczak: Mike Tomczak played a long time with the Steelers. He played in 84 games (27 starts) for the Steelers and he was 15-12 as a starter. He completed 546 of 973 passes (56.1%) for 6,649 yards with 37 TD passes and 43 INTs (79.2 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 65 times for 68 yards (1.0 ypc) for the Steelers.
8.) Charlie Batch: It shows how top heavy the Steelers’ QB situation has been that Batch ranks this high. He has played in 24 games (4 starts) in his career with the Steelers going 3-1. He has completed 76 of 135 passes (56.3%) for 1,034 yards with 8 TD passes and 4 INTs (88.3 QB Rating). He has also carried the ball 37 times for 49 yards (1.3 ypc) with 1 TD run for the Steelers. Batch has been a great QB for the Steelers when called upon.
9.) Mark Malone: His best asset is that he looks like Tom Selleck. That is where his positives end. He played in 60 games (45 starts) for the Steelers who had a 21-24 record in game he started. He completed 690 of 1,374 passes (50.2%) for 8,582 yards with 54 TD passes and 68 INTs (62.4 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 121 times for 459 yards (3.8 ypc) with 14 TD runs for the Steelers.
10.) David Woodley: Woodley was 7-6 as the starting QB for the Steelers. He played in 16 games (13 starts) in his time with the Steelers and he completed 179 of 339 passes (52.8%) for 2,630 yards with 14 TD passes and 21 INTs (66.4 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 28 times for 85 yards (3.0 ypc) with 2 TD runs for the Steelers. He was a game managing type of QB for the Steelers.
11.) Dennis Dixon: Dennis Dixon has only played in 2 games (1 start) in his career with the Steelers and he is 0-1 as the starter. He has completed 13 of 27 passes (48.1%) for 148 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT (62.0 QB Rating). He has also carried the ball 5 times for 24 yards (4.8 ypc) with 1 TD run. Despite his inexperience I still ranked him ahead of some pretty awful QBs as Dixon does have a decent upside.
12.) Cliff Stoudt: He was the man who replaced Terry Bradshaw as the starting QB and he was pathetic. He somehow compiled a 9-7 record as a starting QB but that’s more because of the players he had around him. Stoudt played in 30 games (16 starts) for the Steelers in the 80’s and he completed 244 of 479 passes (50.9%) for 3,217 yards with 14 TD passes and 28 INTs (57.9 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 100 times for 553 yards (5.5 ypc) with 4 TD runs in his time with the Steelers.
13.) Steve Bono: Bono played in 5 games (3 starts) for the Steelers and he was 2-1 as a starter. He completed 44 of 109 passes (40.4%) for 548 yards with 6 TD passes and 4 INTs (59.7 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 8 times for 27 yards (3.4 ypc) with 1 TD run in his time with the Steelers.
14.) Jim Miller: Miller didn’t have much of a chance to show what he could do with the Steelers. He played in 5 games (1 start) for the Steelers and he was 0-1 as a starter. He completed 45 of 81 passes (55.6%) for 520 yards with 2 TD passes and 5 INTs (57.6 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 3 times for -2 yards (-0.7 ypc) for the Steelers.
15.) Kent Graham: Graham was 2-3 as a starter for the Steelers but it was a miracle that they won those games with him under center. Graham played in 14 games (5 starts) for the Steelers and he completed 66 of 148 passes (44.6%) for 878 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 INT (62.7 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 8 times for 7 yards (0.9 ypc) with the Steelers. Graham was pretty pathetic to watch but I still think he was better than the next two guys.
16.) Todd Blackledge: Blackledge also was 2-3 as a starter just like Kent Graham but he was even worse than him and that is saying quite a lot. Blackledge played in 6 games (5 starts) for the Steelers and he completed 60 of 139 passes (44.3%) for 776 yards with 3 TD passes and 6 INTs (50.5 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 81 times for 325 yards (4.0 ypc) with 2 TD runs for the Steelers.
17.) Scott Campbell: I’m really amazed that Scott Campbell played as long as he did with the Steelers because he stunk. Campbell played in 24 games (2 starts) for the Steelers and he was 0-2 as a starter. Campbell completed 51 of 115 passes (44.3%) for 721 yards with 5 TD passes and 7 INTs (54.3 QB Rating). He also carried the ball 12 times for 23 yards (1.9 ypc) in his time with the Steelers.
The Steelers have enjoyed having a lot of success as a franchise as they have won six Super Bowls now. But, it all hasn’t been glory for them when you remember some of the names on this list.