By Darin The salient focus of our discourse centers on the illustrious wide receivers of the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise and their indelible impact on the team’s storied history. As we delve into this subject, we shall chronicle the careers of remarkable players such as Lynn Swann, John Stallworth, and Heinz Ward, whose contributions have resonated through the annals of American football. We will explore the evolution of the Steelers’ receiving corps, highlighting the exceptional talents that have graced the field from the 1960s to the present day. Each player’s unique attributes and pivotal moments will be recounted, showcasing how their performances have shaped the franchise’s success and legacy. In addition, we shall engage our audience with an opportunity to win a vintage hat from Vintage Brand, thereby further connecting our listeners to the rich tapestry of Steelers history.
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Transcript
We got a great show for you tonight to talk about some great receivers of the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise and how they impacted the team, talking about some of the best that caught passes and a chance to win a hat just like this from Vintage Brand.
Speaker A:Details coming up near the end of the podcast.
Speaker A:So stay tuned and stay tuned in just a moment for these great receivers in Steelers history.
Speaker B:This is the Pigskin Daily History Dispatch, a podcast that covers the anniversaries of American football events throughout history.
Speaker B:Your host, Darren Hayes is podcasting from America's North Shore to bring you the memories of the gridiron one day at a time.
Speaker A:Hello my football friends.
Speaker A:This is Darren Hayes of pigskindispatch.com welcome once again to the Pig Pen, your portal to positive football history.
Speaker A:And welcome to an edition where we talk about some great players of my favorite franchise in the National Football League, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Speaker A:And I'm going to be talking about it tonight wearing something very special that our friends at Vintage Brand just shipped to me.
Speaker A:As you can see, I've got this great looking hat here.
Speaker A:It is a vintage hat of my favorite Pittsburgh Steelers with a steely McBean character, a version of him that Vintage came up with to put on these hats.
Speaker A:These hats are very stylish.
Speaker A:We're showing you an image real close up of the hat right now.
Speaker A:Very well made and very vintage looking.
Speaker A:Nice flat brim and, you know, very constructed all the way around with nice materials and very comfortable and stylish.
Speaker A:I've got a lot of people that have commented on it asking me, hey, where did you get that?
Speaker A:Well, I got it at Vintage Brand and they have a lot of very interesting things, not just Steelers items, but items of all the National Football League teams, many college teams and many sports in general going to some vintage logos and a lot of them I think they made design themselves to give that vintage look and it's really a cool thing and really brings out your fandom and let you have a lot of gawkers coming up and ask you some questions.
Speaker A:And you're the first one to wear this stuff, so make sure you check them out.
Speaker A:lly come to light here in the:Speaker A:And that is the receiving core of the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Speaker A:Now we're going to be bringing up some of the cards in my collection of these Steelers and talk about some of the great wide receivers in history.
Speaker A:So going way back in the:Speaker A:He was known for his speed and his big playability in the pre super bowl era for the Steelers.
Speaker A:he NFL and receiving yards in:Speaker A:Paved the way for future wide receiving legends.
Speaker A:And one of those was a guy that came from University of Southern California in the early 70s, Lynn Swan.
Speaker A:Key member of the Steelers Steel curtain dynasty of the 70s.
Speaker A:st overall the:Speaker A:He was known for his graceful catches and acrobatic plays and named the MVP of Super Bowl 10 against the Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker A:The first time those two franchises played.
Speaker A:Where he caught four passes for 161 yards and a touchdown.
Speaker A:And a miraculous play that he had.
Speaker A:Very graceful, very focused watching the ball as he was tripped up, falling to the ground and making that big grab from the blonde bomber Terry Bradshaw to put the Steelers in position to win that game in that championship, their second championship for the franchise.
Speaker A:hall of Fame was Lynn Swan in:Speaker A:His running mate on the other side, well that was number 82, John Stallworth.
Speaker A:Also a crucial part of that Steelers offensive weaponry that they had with the, the, the backs, the quarterback.
Speaker A:But you know, paired up with Swan he was a really a devastating duel to go and, and Stallworth may have been a better receiver.
Speaker A:Seemed like he could grab anything from anywhere.
Speaker A:ed in the fourth round of the:Speaker A:Known for his strong hands, precise routes and clutch performances.
Speaker A:He made numerous iconic catches in super bowls including a 73 yard touchdown in Super Bowl 13 against those same Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker A:ball hall of Fame in the year:Speaker A:Now coming on the heels of these two great gallant wide receivers was Louis Lips.
Speaker A:eiver for the Steelers in the:Speaker A:He was drafted in the first round, 23rd overall.
Speaker A:The:Speaker A:He was ended up making into two Pro Bowls during his career and provided a much needed spark during a rebuilding period for the team.
Speaker A:After that rebuilding period by, by Louis Lips.
Speaker A:Well, Yancy Thigpen came On strong.
Speaker A:r for the Steelers in the mid-:Speaker A:Known for his strong hands and ability to make contested catches.
Speaker A:He had his best season in:Speaker A:Third time that those two teams played.
Speaker A:for the Steelers in the early:Speaker A:Known for his reliable hands and ability to move the chains.
Speaker A:He contributed to the Steelers Super Bowl 40 victory and provided depth and consistency in the receiving core.
Speaker A:Heinz Ward, one of my favorites was one of the most beloved and impactful Steelers of all time.
Speaker A:ted in the third round of the:Speaker A:Very interesting there.
Speaker A:Known for his incredible touchments, blocking prowess and clutch receiving and named the most valuable player of Super Bowl 4 40.
Speaker A:If you remember, he caught that very gadgety play against the Seahawks where fellow receiver, which we'll talk about in a second, Randall L.
Speaker A:Threw the ball to him and caught Seattle sleeping a little bit, scoring that winning touchdown to take the Steelers to victory.
Speaker A:But Heinz Ward was a franchise leader in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
Speaker A:And a favorite target of one, Ben Roethlisberger.
Speaker A:Selected to four Pro Bowls along the way to a great career and hopefully hall of Fame career in the near future.
Speaker A:Well, we told you about Randol.
Speaker A:Well, his full name was Antoine Randol.
Speaker A:Versatile offensive threat, known for his athleticism and trick plays.
Speaker A:And he was also a quarterback in college at Indiana for the Indiana Hoosiers.
Speaker A:So Steelers having two receivers or top two receivers were quarterback college quarterbacks on that Super Bowl 40 team.
Speaker A:Randall ended up going on to the Washington Redskins afterwards but didn't have the same career they did with as a Steeler.
Speaker A:Now San Antonio Holmes came just a year after that and contributed significantly to the Steelers Super Bowl 40 victory.
Speaker A:I'm sorry, to a future victory of a Super bowl in big play receiver and exceptional speed and hands.
Speaker A:th overall in the:Speaker A:Named the most valuable player of Super Bowl 43, making the game winning touchdown catch against the Arizona Cardinals in the back of the end zone.
Speaker A:And to play before that, if you remember, he almost snagged into touchdown there, just slightly overthrown in the opposite corner on his very similar play.
Speaker A:Known for his ability to make acrobatic catches and gain yards after the catch and a great returner was San Antonio.
Speaker A:Holmes went on to play with the jets after he left the Steelers.
Speaker A:Another player had a very similar route going to New York after being a Steelers Plaxico Burris out of Michigan State.
Speaker A:A Spartan, A towering receiver with a large catch radius.
Speaker A:irst round eighth overall the:Speaker A:He provided a deep threatened red zone target for the Steelers and had several productive seasons with the team before signing with the New York Giants.
Speaker A:Now in the wake of him leaving Antonio Brown took over after San Antonio Holmes and Plaxical burst left.
Speaker A:He was one of the most dominant receivers in NFL history during his prime.
Speaker A:ted in the sixth round of the:Speaker A:Led the NFL in receptions and receivers receiving yards multiple times.
Speaker A:Was named to seven Pro Bowls, four first team all pro selections with the Steelers and a great receiver and again great target for Mr.
Speaker A:Ben Roethlisberger to throw to.
Speaker A:Another one that Roethlisberger like to toss the ball was to Mike Wallace, A burner with elite deep threat ability.
Speaker A:ted in the third round of the:Speaker A:Known for his ability to stretch the field and score long touchdowns.
Speaker A:Consistently led the Steelers and receiving yards during his tenure there before moving on and eventually ending up with the Baltimore Ravens, their rival now Martavis Bryant.
Speaker A:Was a receiver that came in as a big target that Roethlisberger really begged for every year of his career.
Speaker A:He was a physically give it gifted receiver with a rare combination of size and speed.
Speaker A:fting the fourth round of the:Speaker A:He showed flashes of brilliance with his big playability and contested catch prowess.
Speaker A:His career was unfortunately hampered by off field issues and suspensions which had him leave the team and go on to other leagues and teams in the NFL.
Speaker A:JuJu Smith Schuster hard to get out but not hard to watch.
Speaker A:Was a great talented young USC receiver.
Speaker A:Very similar the way the path that Lynn Swan came, but he was a popular and productive receiver.
Speaker A:Known for his physically physicality and his personality.
Speaker A:Built like a really tight end and really strong hands.
Speaker A:ed in the second round of the:Speaker A:Had a breakout season in:Speaker A:Known for his strong run blocking and leadership and he is now found on the roster of the Kansas City Chiefs and ended up winning a Super bowl with them.
Speaker A:Also spent a year with the New England Patriots.
Speaker A:Deontay Johnson was came in almost a clone of Antonio Brown.
Speaker A:Really a shifty and elusive receiver known for his route running and ability to create separation.
Speaker A:ted in the third round of the:Speaker A:Consistently led the Steelers and receptions and receiving ers during his time with the team.
Speaker A:Was also a very capable punt returner.
Speaker A:And these are some really great receivers that we're talking about here along with, you know, these guys that came from back in the day before the this receivers that we just talked about.
Speaker A:standing men that played on a:Speaker A:How about LB Nickel?
Speaker A:He was an end for the Steelers in that late 50s season.
Speaker A:Great career that LB Nickel had.
Speaker A:And one of his running mates was Bill McPeek, number 84 of the Steelers, the original 84.
Speaker A:Really an outstanding receiver in his own right.
Speaker A:The Steelers having some great quarterbacks on their roster including Len Dawson and Jack Kemp.
Speaker A:Johnny Unitis had a stint there for a little bit but didn't end up making the team.
Speaker A:Ted Marchabrota and some, some others, you know, playing with black and gold and that's what LB nickel and Bill McPeak would catch passes to.
Speaker A:So those are just a few of our wide receivers that have really made a difference in Steelers history.
Speaker A:And you know, we, like I said, we have these hats going from vintage brand and if you'd like to win one of these hats, we have a contest going on right now where you go onto our YouTube channel Pigskin Dispatch and put a comment in on this video saying I want that vintage brand Steely McBeam hat and they'll enter you automatically in a contest that we're having to give a lucky winner a vintage brand steely McBean hat.
Speaker A:Just like one I'm wearing right now and I think something that you will enjoy and treasure as a member of Steeler Nation.
Speaker A:So tune in next week.
Speaker A:We talk about some more great Steelers history and we have some great history for football overall.
Speaker A:Continue our NFL Pre Super Bowl Championship.
Speaker A:We have our conversations with FootballArchaeology.com's Timothy P.P.
Speaker A:brown and a few more surprises coming at you here on the pigskindispatch.com pigskin dispatch podcast and the pigskin dispatch YouTube channel.
Speaker A:So your portal deposit of football history till next time everybody have a great, great iron day.
Speaker A:That's all the football history we have today, folks.
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