Steelers Throwback Thursday: Top solo tacklers in team history
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The Pittsburgh Steelers created one of the most dominant defenses – the “Steel Curtain” – in the late 1960s to 1970s and continue to build upon the lessons learned during that epic Super Bowl-winning period. While sacks and interceptions pop out on the defensive stats sheet, tackle totals aren’t as exciting… until a player starts to accumulate enough of them week after week, season after season, that they earn the respect of fans.
Tackling is considered a “fundamental” in football. It’s something that is expected from players on defense. There have been players who have excelled in that area enough to truly stand out as athletes, though. We look at the Steelers’ top tacklers in team history and show why those stats elevated the status of those players overall.
Single-season tackles leader
There are two linebackers who stand at the top of this stat column more than once: James Farrior and Lawrence Timmons. The duo are tied with most solo tackles in a single season at 96. Farrior hit the mark in 2003 with Timmons matching that number in 2010.
Farrior also held the team single-season solo tackle title* in 2008 (89), 2006 (85), 2010 (80), and 2005 (76).
Timmons also held the team single-season solo tackle title* in 2014 (87), 2013 (86), 2016 (78), 2015 (77), and 2012 (75).
No other players in the top 25 in this particular statistic graced the record books more than one season, showing just how rare of talent Farrior and Timmons had in bringing opponents to the turf, including in the open field.
| Player | Tkls | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Ernie Holmes | 86 | 2001 |
| Minkah Fitzpatrick | 84 | 2021 |
| Kendrell Bell | 81 | 2003 |
| James Harrison | 76 | 2007 |
| Ike Taylor | 75 | 2005 |
| Ryan Clark | 74 | 2012 |
| Bryant McFadden | 74 | 2010 |
| Troy Polamalu | 74 | 2006 |
| Devin Bush | 72 | 2019 |
| Terrell Edmunds | 71 | 2019 |
| Sean Davis | 71 | 2017 |
Fitzpatrick is the top defensive back on the stats sheet. The 2021 season was Fitzpatrick’s first full (16 game) season with the Steelers. He joined the team in 2021 but played his first two games with the Miami Dolphins; playing 14 with Pittsburgh.
Career solo tackles leaders
It comes a no surprise that Farrior and Timmons top the career stats sheet in solo tackles due to the number of years they led the Steelers during an individual season.
Polamalu, as a safety, came as a bit of a surprise in third place, at least if you’re merely viewing team stats. Anyone who saw Polamalu play, especially in person, knows that he was always around the ball and had a tenacity unlike most players when it came to downing an opponent. Those tackles propelled Polamalu into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
| Player | Tkls | Games |
|---|---|---|
| James Farrior | 740 | 154 |
| Lawrence Timmons | 677 | 158 |
| Troy Polamalu | 577 | 158 |
| James Harrison | 554 | 177 |
| Ike Taylor | 518 | 174 |
| Ryan Clark | 448 | 111 |
| William Gay | 422 | 160 |
| Larry Foote | 410 | 158 |
| Cameron Heyward | 404 | 194 |
| Vince Williams | 333 | 121 |
Cameron Heyward is the only remaining active player on the list of top ten career solo tackles at this time. Chances are good that Heyward moves up this chart before ending his career.
It will be exciting to see which Steelers players move closer and closer to taking the top spots as the game moves forward.
* Stats verified per StatsMuse and Pro Football Reference
