| 27 S Brent Alexander | Grade: D |
| Has a reputation as a coach on the field, but has lost a step he could not afford to lose. Not a hitter. Now a liability in coverage. Provides little help to the corners because of his lack of speed. If he is a starter heading into next season the Steelers are in trouble. |
| 85 TE John Allred | Grade: C- |
| A warm body that stuck around I guess because he can play special teams. No reason for him to return. |
| 94 DE Rodney Bailey | Grade: B |
| Developed into a useful pass rushing specialist. A solid member of the defensive line rotation. Needs to show he can hold up at the point of attack to ever be considered an everydown starter. |
| 16 QB Charlie Batch | Grade: I |
| Spent the year learning the offense. Will try to find a starting job, but for selfish reasons I hope he can't and resigns as the primary backup. |
| 81 TE Marco Battaglia | Grade: I |
| Space filler signed because of injuries. |
| 97 ILB Kendrell Bell | Grade: A- |
| On the field play when healthy was again spectacular. High ankle sprain that bothered him most of the season was the real undoing of the defense. |
| 36 RB Jerome Bettis | Grade: C+ |
| Bothered by nagging injuries all season. Career clearly winding down, although he still had enough left to lead the team in rushing touchdowns. Even if cut after June 1st would count over $2 millon against the cap for 2003 and 2004. Need to hope he can get healthy and in shape during the offseason so he can have one more productive season sharing carries with Zereoue. |
| 87 TE Mark Bruener | Grade: C+ |
| Still a solid blocker. Lack of foot speed limits his usefulness in the passing game. Finished the last two seasons on IR. Paid more than he is worth, but probably will be around for at least another year because of the terms of his contract renegotiation before this season. |
| 80 WR Plaxico Burress | Grade: A- |
| Second straight 1000 yard receiving season. Has the ability to be a pro bowler if he can overcome problems staying focused and short arming passes over the middle. |
| 96 NT Kendrick Clancy | Grade: C |
| Simply too small to be effective as a NT in the 3-4. |
| 48 TE Matt Cushing | Grade: C |
| Decent enough blocker that knows the offense. Borderline pro that doesn't have the skill to make a real difference, although it's nice to know he will be around to sign in case of emergency. |
| 66 OG Alan Faneca | Grade: A |
| Deserving two time pro bowler. Punishing run blocker that has developed into an all around force in the middle of the line. |
| 51 ILB James Farrior | Grade: B |
| Played better as the season progressed and he learned the defense. A relative bargain that should be a starter at least through the length of his contract. |
| 57 ILB John Fiala | Grade: C |
| Finished season on IR. A useful enough backup with no upside that could lose his roster spot to a rookie because of the development of Foote. |
| 41 SS Lee Flowers | Grade: D |
| Still talks a good game. Only remaining positive attribute is he can ocasionally deliver a blow in run support. Painfully slow. Even more of a liability in coverage than the past, which is hard to fathom. A free agent that should not be resigned. |
| 50 ILB Larry Foote | Grade: C |
| Played more than expected due to injuries suffered by Bell and Fiala. Hardnosed throwback that never quit despite making his share of rookie mistakes. May not have the size/speed ratio to ever project as a full time starter, but seems more than capable of filling John Fiala's pre-injury role. |
| 45 RB Chris Fuamatu-Ma'afala | Grade: C+ |
| Showed flashes when healthy. Could be a nice compliment to Zereoue, but he can simply not be counted on because of his injury history. |
| 72 OT Wayne Gandy | Grade: B+ |
| Quietly efficient. Generally played well enough to not be noticed, a good thing for a LT. Does have a propensity for getting penalties at inopportune times which can be bothersome. A free agent that might want more than he is worth. Probably replaceable, although his return at a reasonable price wouldn't be a bad thing. |
| 92 OLB Jason Gildon | Grade: C+ |
| Had an off year after 2 straight trips to the pro bowl. Disapeared for the first 3 months of the season. NFL player of the month in December, but could not sustain that level of play in the playoffs. Contract status means he will be a Steeler for at least 2 more seasons. Never a consistent everydown player, to be useful he needs to make big plays at the frequency he did in 2000 and 2001. |
| 53 OLB Clark Haggans | Grade: C- |
| One dimensional pass rusher that lacks the speed and instincts to ever be a starter at OLB. Looked useful at the start of the season. Fizzled when opponents figured out how easily he could be handled. |
| 98 NT Casey Hampton | Grade: A |
| Prototypical 3-4 NT. Blossomed into a force as the year progressed. |
| 93 OLB James Harrison | Grade: I |
| A warm body for the practice field. |
| 64 C Jeff Hartings | Grade: B |
| Gave a solid performance despite various nagging injuries. Might be slightly overpaid. The structure of his contract all but assures him the starting job in 2003, although if Okobi continues to develop 2004 could be another story. |
| 34 FB Verron Haynes | Grade: C |
| Got more touches than expected before ending up on IR. More of a RB than a traditional Steeler FB. His versatility is an asset for a team with injury prone runners. |
| 76 NT Chris Hoke | Grade: I |
| Undersized NT that is basically a waste of roster space. The defensive line position is very thin and the Steelers were lucky that the starters and Bailey stayed relatively healthy. Depth needs to be addressed at the expense of players like Hoke. |
| 28 SS Chris Hope | Grade: C+ |
| Started slowly, but showed glimpses as the season progressed. Has the potential to be part of the future at SS. |
| 29 CB Chidi Iwuoma | Grade: C+ |
| Surprisingly useful special teamer. |
| 95 ILB Mike Jones | Grade: C |
| Stopgap veteran that barring injury will not be around next year. |
| 99 DE Brett Keisel | Grade: C+ |
| Showed nice upside for a 7th round pick. Contributed on special teams and even got some reps at DE late in the season. |
| 35 FB Dan Kreider | Grade: B+ |
| Punishing blocker that was actually used in the offense more than expected with decent results. |
| 90 ILB Justin Kurpeikis | Grade: I |
| There has to be a more useful player to occupy a roster spot. |
| 31 FS Mike Logan | Grade: B- |
| Showed he can play, but remains a question mark because of his inability to stay healthy. |
| 8 QB Tommy Maddox | Grade: A- |
| Deserving winner of NFL comeback player of the year. Saved season in week 3. Amazingly returned from serious injury in first Tennessee game. Really played his best football in the last 6 quarters of the playoffs. Unquestioned starter heading into next season. The frequency with which he threw bad interceptions remains a concern. |
| 88 WR Terance Mathis | Grade: B |
| Veteran insurance policy. May want to move on to a team that has more need of his services. |
| 89 WR Lee Mays | Grade: C+ |
| Excellent size/speed ratio. Has tools to develop into a legitimate deep threat. Did a solid job returning kicks although he was understandably not as dynamic as Randle El. |
| 4 P Josh Miller | Grade: C+ |
| Had a subpar year by his standards before landing on IR. Funny that his value to the team was most apparent in the playoffs when he could not play. |
| 78 OT Mathias Nkwenti | Grade: I |
| A project that is impossible to evaluate because he has rarely been active on gameday for the last 2 years. I have some hope for him simply because I believe in offensive line coach Russ Grimm. |
| 56 C Chukky Okobi | Grade: B |
| Held up well when Hartings missed time due to injury. |
| 2 K Todd Peterson | Grade: D |
| A mistake from the start. Did not have the leg strength or mental toughness to kick in the poor conditions of Heinz Field. Not even worth bringing to camp next season. |
| 55 OLB Joey Porter | Grade: A |
| Elected to his first Pro Bowl. Selected first team All Pro. Struggled a bit down the stretch when opponents started paying more attention to him. |
| 22 CB Hank Poteat | Grade: D- |
| Abysmal in coverage. Anonymous on special teams. His performance against the Ravens and Browns when Scott was injured should remove any doubt that he is simply not an NFL caliber player. |
| 82 WR Antwaan Randle El | Grade: A- |
| Electric. Added a new dimension to the Steelers return game. Dangerous threat throwing, running, and receiving. Showed tremendous upside as a slot receiver, especially in the playoffs. Needs to take better care of the ball. |
| 3 K Jeff Reed | Grade: A- |
| A godsend. How he lasted as a free agent until late November is mind boggling. I have no idea if he can continue to perform at this level, but I am happy the Steelers are the team with the opportunity to find out. |
| 79 OT Oliver Ross | Grade: C |
| Horribly miscast as an OG. I am not ready to write him off as a RT if Gandy leaves and Smith shows he can handle LT. |
| 14 P Tom Rouen | Grade: C- |
| Showed against Tennessee why he was released twice this season. Will not be back. |
| 54 LS Mike Schneck | Grade: B |
| Did his job without incident which is all you can ask of a long snapper. |
| 30 CB Chad Scott | Grade: B- |
| Does not have the pure speed to be a top corner. Has a tendency to give receivers too much cushion. Gives up more than his fair share of big plays. All that said, his value was never more apparent than when he missed time after breaking his thumb. Got no support from Flowers and Alexander. Solid against the run. Can blitz. His future might be at safety, but I can live with giving him at least one more year as a starting corner while a rookie is groomed. |
| 73 OG Kendall Simmons | Grade: B |
| Won the starting job and held his own. Should only improve with experience. |
| 91 DE Aaron Smith | Grade: B |
| Maligned by some after signing a big contract. Did not have a spectacular season, but provided the steady play needed out of a 3-4 end. |
| 77 OT Marvel Smith | Grade: B |
| Continues to improve as a starter. More technician than mauler. Might be best suited to LT where he conceivably could have to move should Gandy leave. |
| 10 QB Kordell Stewart | Grade: C+ |
| Deserved to lose job after poor start. Also deserves credit for not sulking and coming up big when needed after the injury to Maddox. Unlike most, I could live with him as a backup if he accepted the role and a paycut. Neither will happen. Only one year left on his contract so he can be released or traded at any time. I hold out hope the Steelers can get a 4th or 5th round pick for him on draft day. |
| 39 FS Erik Totten | Grade: I |
| Practice squad fodder that lacks the size and speed to be part of the solution to the problems in the secondary. |
| 26 CB Deshea Townsend | Grade: B |
| Best cover corner on the roster. Solid nickel back that does not have the size to be an effective full time starter in the Steelers scheme. |
| 84 TE Jerame Tuman | Grade: B- |
| Adequate blocker. More of a threat in the passing game than Bruener, althought that isn't saying much. |
| 68 OG Keydrick Vincent | Grade: C |
| Provides solid interior line depth. |
| 67 DE Kimo Von Oelhoffen | Grade: B- |
| Slowing down with age. Still can hold his own at the point of attack. |
| 86 WR Hines Ward | Grade: A+ |
| Has made himself into an elite receiver through hard work and dedication. Second only to Marvin Harrison in receptions. Topped 1300 yards receiving. Plays hard on every down. Vicious downfield blocker. Deserving winner of the Stillers.com 2002 Hard Hat Award. |
| 20 CB Dewayne Washintgton | Grade: B |
| Prone to the big mistake, but as mentioned about Scott got no support from the safeties. The best everydown player the Steelers have in the secondary. |
| 21 RB Amos Zereoue | Grade: B+ |
| Clearly the best back on the roster at seasons end. Improved in the red zone and fourth quarter as the season progressed. I was originally sceptical about his ability to develop into a feature back, but he took a major step in that direction this season. |