A SUPER STEELER – ROD WOODSON
For an athlete to have their photo taken in a Superman outfit would usually present an image of vanity. With former Steelers’ cornerback Rod Woodson, that certainly is not the right call.
In the nineties, the Steelers’ Digest came up with innovative images for their front page. My man Greg Lloyd as Darth Vader was one. Superman Woodson was another.
The Steelers drafted Rod Woodson in 1987. As they used their valuable first pick when selecting him that year, they obviously had high hopes that he would become a great asset for the team – and they were right.
The Steelers like to draft athletes. In Woodson they had a competitor out of the top drawer, who possessed the ideal blend of speed combined with strength.
While at Purdue University, Woodson had also starred in track and qualified for the 1984 Olympic Trials in the 110-meter hurdles .
In Ed Bouchette’s (of the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette) 1993 book, “Dawn of a New Steel Age,” there is a very informative chapter on Rod Woodson.
Bouchette reveals that Woodson once said “If you don’t hit, you won’t make it in Pittsburgh. I like hitting; it’s fun. If I tried to just to be a cover man, it would take away the excitement of the game.”
The Steelers took full advantage of Woodson’s desire to hit. In their dime defense that deployed six defensive backs, they moved Woodson from cornerback and put him on the line of scrimmage about five yards wide of the defensive end.
They called it the press or the slot position, where he took a receiver head-on. It put Woodson more into the action and allowed him to blitz, a fierce weapon because of his size, speed and closeness to the quarterback.”
Woodson loved it and enthusiastically commented at the time, “Those slot receivers are closer to the quarterback and they usually throw to those guys. That gets me more involved. You’re in the action. You’re right there. I’m reading the quarterback, I can blitz, I can play man-to-man, I can play zone.
It’s like playing linebacker. You get to get your hands dirty. That’s something cornerbacks don’t often get to do, blitz and get sacks.”
Before going to the NFL, Woodson displayed his recklessness on the field at his university Purdue, where he starred, winning All Big Ten and All American honours in 1985 and 1986.
His wildness was a trait recognised by his track coach Mike Poehlein. He would find Woodson in the locker room after running the hurdles bleeding from the wounds on his legs, gashes that often required stitches.
Rod preferred to bull his way through the hurdles rather than leap over them. “Rod broke them all the time,” Poehlein said laughing. “We got those new, unbreakable hurdles and he broke them.
He went through them all the time and one day I said, “Rod, let’s go over the damn things,” but he was so tough that he didn’t want to be bothered by jumping over them, he’d rather go through them.
It cost him tenths of a second. It didn’t please me as a track coach, but if I was a football coach, I’d love it.” As obviously coach Chuck Noll did when he uncharacteristically blurted, “I’m in love with him,” after Woodson was drafted.
The Steelers displayed their respect for their veteran in 1995 when he injured his knee during the season opener against Detroit. The Steelers showed their support by not posting him on the injured reserve list, which would have finished him for the season.
He became the only player in NFL history to return from torn knee ligaments and play the same season when he made a cameo appearance in Pittsburgh’s Super Bowl loss to Dallas. In the 2000 season he finally got the Super Bowl ring he deserved with Baltimore.
It was neat to see him as a co-commentator on the BBC’s broadcast of the Super Bowl in February.
In 1993, the Associated Press named Rod Woodson the NFL Defensive Player of the Year.
In 1994, he was named to the NFL's 75th Anniversary Team.
Last year, Rod Woodson was a lock for the Steelers’ 75th Anniversary Team; such is the respect that he is held in by Steelers’ fans.
The man was an awesome Steeler and, like coach Noll, the Steelers UK Black ‘n Gold loved him. He took the very first Steelers’ UK MVP trophy in 1992.
Eleven trips to the Pro Bowl confirm his greatness.
Superman Rod Woodson.