One of the most interesting thought exercises of an NFL offseason is predicting future Pro Football Hall of Famers. Fans and analysts alike are always interested to see the newest list of enshrinees for an upcoming class while also looking ahead to future classes.
The folks at 33rd Team did just that recently when they took a look at retired and non-active players from recent years that will be reaching eligibility over the next few years. Then they rated how likely these players are to make the Hall from perceived locks, those who are likely, and then some possibilities.
Three former Pittsburgh Steelers players made the list, one a lock and the other two coming at the likely tier. Per the 33rd team, two-time Super Bowl champion quarterback Ben Roethlisberger is a lock while center Maurkice Pouncey and wide receiver Antonio Brown are likely Hall of Famers.
Roethlisberger’s career speaks for itself. He had a 64.4% career regular-season completion percentage and threw for 64,088 yards and 418 touchdowns in the regular season. In the playoffs, he threw for another 5,972 yards and 36 touchdowns en route to winning two Super Bowls. He also had 53 game-winning drives in the regular season and added four more in the playoffs.
No game-winning drive for Roethlisberger was bigger than the 2008 Super Bowl against the Arizona Cardinals. The Cardinals took a 23-20 lead with 2:37 left in the fourth quarter on a 64-yard touchdown pass from QB Kurt Warner to wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald.
However, Roethlisberger would take almost exactly two minutes to march Pittsburgh down the field. He found WR Santonio Holmes in the corner of the end zone for a six-yard touchdown, and Holmes’ toe-tapping effort is an iconic one.
There are plenty of reasons that Roethlisberger should be the next in a great line of Steelers’ greats to enter the Pro Football Hall of Fame, but that game-winning drive in the Super Bowl is certainly up there.
While Maurkice Pouncey might not be a lock, he certainly had a fantastic ten-year career, all with Pittsburgh. He started 134 regular-season games and eight postseason games. He made nine Pro Bowls, was named first-team All-Pro twice, second-team All-Pro three times, and was a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2010s Team.
Pouncey was highly respected by players and coaches around him. It’s hard to quantify whether an offensive lineman should be in the Hall of Fame, but Pouncey was a rock at center for the Steelers and one of the best to do it at that time.
Antonio Brown might be the most controversial name on this list, yet the 33rd Team still has him as a likely Hall of Famer. That speaks to just how good Brown was as a receiver before things went off the rails. Brown played parts of 12 seasons in the NFL, nine of them with Pittsburgh. He appeared in 130 regular-season games and 10 postseason games for the Steelers.
In the regular season with Pittsburgh, Brown had 837 receptions for 11,207 yards and 74 touchdowns. He also had 51 catches for 837 yards and four touchdowns in the playoffs for the team. In 2014, he led the league in receptions (129) and receiving yards (1,698).
Brown also led the league with 136 receptions in 2015, his 1,533 yards and 109.5 yards per game were league-best in 2017, and his 15 touchdowns led the league in 2018. He was named first team All-Pro four times, second-team All-Pro once, and he made the Pro Bowl seven times, all with the Steelers. He was the Sporting News Offensive Player of the Year in 2017. Like Pouncey, Brown was also named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame All-2010s Team.
While there is no question that Brown’s later actions, both on the field and off it, have colored his standing with most, there’s also no question that during his time with Pittsburgh, he was among the best at the position. That’s why the 33rd Team has Brown as a likely Hall of Famer because, for the majority of nine seasons, Brown was unquestionably that good. Whether that will ring true with Hall of Fame voters now remains to be seen.
