A new Pittsburgh Steelers series to pass the time this offseason. We’re ranking the top ten “freak” athletes in history. Choosing just ten is never easy for a franchise full of so much history and success. This list isn’t just about the fastest players, either. We’ve ranked those guys before. This focuses on strength, quickness, and speed. An overall athletic profile relative to their size and position of players who simply moved in ways no one could’ve expected.
We’ll take it two at a time and count down. Beginning with No. 9 and 10.
No. 10 Carlton Haselrig/OL (1989-1993)
Haselrig’s time in Pittsburgh wasn’t especially long but the fact he had any sort of NFL career, let alone a successful one, is remarkable. A star NCAA wrestler, Haselrig is one of just a handful of modern era NFL players who didn’t play college football. Drafted by Pittsburgh in the 12th round out of Pitt-Johnstown, Haselrig’s athletic tools – his strength and speed – combined with the leverage naturally understood in wrestling made him an ideal lineman and quick study.
Starting as a nose tackle, Haselrig soon flipped to offensive guard. In 1992, he made the Pro Bowl. Across four years with Pittsburgh, he made 36 starts.
In a 2018 interview, former NFL wide receiver and cousin Andrew Hawkins called Haselrig the best athlete in the family. Rod Woodson joined the conversation and offered plenty of praise himself.
In college, Haselrig defeated Kurt Angle. In the NFL, he made the Pro Bowl. A remarkable athletic career where Haselrig made everything look easy. Even when it so obviously wasn’t.
No. 9 Ben Roethlisberger/QB (2004-2021)
At first blush, it might be surprising to include Roethlisberger on this list. He was far from the fastest and his weight and not-so-rigorous training schedule often made him the butt of Internet jokes. But he was an impressive athlete, especially for the first half of his Hall of Fame career.
Few quarterbacks before him had such a size and athlete profile. Roethlisberger was big, strong, and a little more fleet of foot then given credit for. Defenders had a hard time getting him the ground and when they failed, Roethlisberger made plays. A unique type of athleticism most passers can’t even dream of. He had twitch, light feet, and a knack for getting out of jams.
Go watch a nearly 7-minute reel (and it’s not the only one) of him making defenders miss and following up with pinpoint passes.
Terry Bradshaw was also an excellent scrambler and probably faster, but Roethlisberger was bigger. Pound for pound, his athleticism was more impressive and unexpected. That earns him a place on this list.
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