Throughout the team’s history, the Pittsburgh Steelers have had a number of impressive secondary players, but the trio of Carnell Lake, Rod Woodson and Troy Polamalu stand out as some of the best. The three had a combined 14 All-Pro selections among them, and all three were coached at one point by defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau. During an appearance on The Game Before The Money podcast, LeBeau broke down what in particular made those three defensive players so special.
For Lake, LeBeau said that playing linebacker in college helped him make plays at the line of scrimmage, but he was impressive in coverage and had the size of the safety, which made him “unusual.”
“People were having trouble figuring out exactly where to play [him], and they figured he was safety size, but he played like a linebacker in college, and he had the ability to play deep and make plays at the line of scrimmage,” LeBeau said. “He was very, very unusual.”
LeBeau pointed to Lake’s physical gifts for his ability to switch to corner when Rod Woodson went down and become an All-Pro corner. LeBeau said it’s “unheard of” for a player who was already an All-Pro at safety to transition and become an All-Pro cornerback.
As for Woodson, he called him “probably the best corner that’s ever played.”
“Woodson was probably the best corner that’s ever played in the NFL,” LeBeau said. “He was not only a great defender, but he was a tremendous kick returner and interception returner.”
He quipped that having Woodson and Lake together “made me a pretty good coach, believe me.”
LeBeau said that Polamalu was “tremendously gifted” and could do pretty much anything that the Steelers wanted him to do.
“You could create almost anything you wanted to, and he could do it,” LeBeau said. “And then you had a guy that could play the slot corner, he could play outside, but he was so instinctive and quick inside. He could get to the ball all the time. All you had to do was get him the ball and he was gonna finish the play.”
All three were among the best players at their position and the best defensive players in football when they played. Having Lake and Woodson in the same defensive backfield was certainly a boon for the Steelers and LeBeau, who had two athletically gifted and talented players to mold and work with.
Polamalu also had a great safety partner in Ryan Clark, and LeBeau said that the two of them worked together “as good as any two safeties I’ve ever seen.” Having someone to work off who you can trust certainly helps players achieve greatness, and there’s no doubt that all three of Lake, Woodson and Polamalu had unique physical and mental traits that made them really special players — and in the case of Woodson and Polamalu Hall of Famers.
Learning under LeBeau certainly helped as well, as he’s one of the best coordinators in NFL history and was able to get the best out of every player he coached. LeBeau inducted Polamalu into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the two had a close relationship as player and coach.
While all three of Woodson, Lake and Polamalu likely would’ve incredible pros even if they didn’t have LeBeau as their coach, there’s an argument to be made that none would have been as talented as they ended up being without the tutelage of LeBeau. He was able to identify how to best use them, even if that meant playing them out of their primary position as he had to end up doing with Lake, and still getting the most out of them.
He was an impressive coordinator and had some impressive players he turned into Hall of Famers or All-Pros who maybe wouldn’t have gotten there if not for him, and the Steelers are better off for it.
