"When it comes to football, it's the most physical game of the year." — Terrell Suggs on the Ravens-Steeles rivalry.
Fueled by consistent talent, playoff runs and two powerhouse defenses with perennial Pro Bowlers to surefire Hall of Fame talent, these two clubs are absolutely the hardest hitting rivalry in the NFL. Unlike the NFC West's Seahawks-49ers rivalry, which are too busy telling one another how good the other teams are, the Ravens and Steelers just hate each other and want the other to be disrespected. But finally diving into the Pittsburgh Steelers teams, I had answer the question of, "Is there anything to respect, or give credit for?"
The first, and biggest that I have to mention, regardless of current status, or how long ago these victories were: six Super Bowl Championships. No team ever accidentally wins a Super bowl championship. The Pittsburgh Steelers have ran the gauntlet eight times, and hoisted that coveted trophy six times.
In 1974, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected four Hall of Fame players. This draft had helped them dominate the NFL with four Super Bowl's that were aforementioned.
What sticks out the most when thinking of the Pittsburgh Steelers? The defense. The Steel Curtain. The Pittsburgh linebacker factory. Consistently pumping out Pro Bowl & All-Pro defenders. I mean every draft, I watch as a linebacker is drafted to the Steelers and have to worry how great he will become. This year was Ryan Shazier, last year was Jarvis Jones. Both are talented players that have a ceiling of All-Pro talent.
It may be easy to hate them. But they've earned a certain level of respect.