Ranking Steelers' top 10 first-round picks of last 30 years

The Steelers have had some notable misses in the first round of the draft over the years, like all teams, but the franchise also has had some big hits that led to outstanding careers.

With the draft coming up in a few weeks, here's a chance to revisit the Steelers' first-round picks in a fun way. We'll cover the past 30 years and rank the top 10 first-round picks during that span.

Before we get to my rankings -- which certainly can be up for debate depending on your criteria -- let's take a look at all of the first-round picks from the past 30 years (selection number in parenthesis).

1993: CB Deon Figures (23)
1994: WR Charles Johnson (17)
1995: TE Mark Bruener (27)
1996: OT Jamain Stephens (29)
1997: CB Chad Scott (24)
1998: G Alan Faneca (26)
1999: WR Troy Edwards (13)
2000: WR Plaxico Burress (8)
2001: DT Casey Hampton (19)
2002: G Kendall Simmons (30)
2003: S Troy Polamalu (16)
2004: QB Ben Roethlisberger (11)
2005: TE Heath Miller (30)
2006: WR Santonio Holmes (25)
2007: LB Lawrence Timmons (15)
2008: RB Rashard Mendenhall (23)
2009: DT Ziggy Hood (32)
2010: C Maurkice Pouncey (18)
2011: DT Cameron Heyward (31)
2012: G David DeCastro (24)
2013: LB Jarvis Jones (17)
2014: LB Ryan Shazier (15)
2015: LB Bud Dupree (22)
2016: CB Artie Burns (25)
2017: LB T.J. Watt (30)
2018: S Terrell Edmunds (28)
2019: LB Devin Bush (10)
2020: No pick
2021: RB Najee Harris (24)
2022: QB Kenn Pickett (20)

First of all, look at that run from 2003-06. I've got all four of those guys in my top 10 below. The franchise also crushed it from 2010-12 with three outstanding first-round picks in a row.

OK, so on to my top 10.

My criteria was based on position dominance, with heavy emphasis placed on All-Pro honors and other major awards. Now, given that, I absolutely can make a very strong case that my No. 2 choice actually should be No. 1, but I explain more about that coming up.

1. QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER

Accolades: Two Super Bowls, Offensive Rookie of the Year, six Pro Bowls, two times leading NFL in passing yards, NFL record for career games with 500 yards passing (4).

He won two Super Bowls as the starting quarterback, one of only 13 QBs with multiple Super Bowl titles. In my book, that puts him over the top in this discussion, along with the fact that he was an elite QB for a long, long time.

The bottom line is the quarterback is the most important position in all of sports, and Big Ben always gave the Steelers a chance. No, he was never the best quarterback in the NFL for any single season, but he was pretty much always in the top 5-10 and will be in the Hall of Fame.

If you disagree with me having Roethlisberger at the top, I completely understand. But I'll stick with my reasoning of two Super Bowls and our society's QB bias.

Oh, and let's not ever forget this, one of the most important tackles in Steelers history.

2. G ALAN FANECA

Accolades: One Super Bowl, six-time first-team All-Pro, two-time second-team All-Pro, 9 Pro Bowls, NFL All-Decade Team for 2000s, Steelers All-Time Team and Hall of Honor, Hall of Famer.

Absolutely, he could be No. 1 on this list, and I would have zero beef with anyone who ranks him there. What an incredible career he had, and for many years he was the best guard in the NFL.

Some readers have taken issue with me having Faneca ranked above Troy Polamalu, and that's perfectly fair. I go into further detail in the comments about why I put them in this order.

3. S TROY POLAMALU

Accolades: Two Super Bowls, Defensive Player of Year (2010), four-time first-team All-Pro, two-time second-team All-Pro, eight Pro Bowls, NFL All-Decade Team for 2000s, Steelers All-Time Team and Hall of Honor, Hall of Famer.

One of the most electrifying and exciting defensive players in NFL history. He always had a flare for the dramatic and could change games with a single play.

Sure, I could show you a Polamalu football video, but this one's maybe even better.

4. LB T.J. WATT

Accolades: Defensive Player of Year (2021), three-time first-team All-Pro, one second-team All-Pro, five Pro Bowls.

The best defensive player in the game today, when healthy, he can change the momentum of any game on any play. He only played in 10 games last season because of injuries, and he'll need to stay healthy to keep up his elite level of play.

There may be some who think Watt is rated a little high at this stage of his career. I would counter by saying that, at his top level of play, he may be more impactful than even Polamalu was during his brilliant career. Again, the key for Watt is to stay healthy going forward, because he puts his body through such a beating, much like Polamalu did.

5. DT CAMERON HEYWARD

Accolades: Three-time first-team All-Pro, one second-team All-Pro, six Pro Bowls.

He's enjoyed a terrific and consistent career, plus he's been able to remain healthy and be the heart and soul of the defense for a number of years. Making all his success even better, he's a Pittsburgh guy whose dad played at Pitt before going on the NFL. That's what you call a great human-interest story.

6. C MAURKICE POUNCEY

Accolades: Two-time first-team All-Pro, three-time second-team All-Pro, nine Pro Bowls, NFL Team of Decade for 2010s.

He was fantastic early in his career, with four of his five All-Pro honors coming by 2014, and has remained a very good and steady presence on the offensive line in recent years.

A case could be made that he should be ranked ahead of Heyward. But Heyward has kind of been the opposite in that he's played better later on his career, while Pouncey was better earlier on.

7. NT CASEY HAMPTON

Accolades: Two Super Bowls, five Pro Bowls, Steelers All-Time Team.

He enjoyed a fantastic career as major force on the defensive line and won two Super Bowls. As a nose tackle, he didn't always compile huge stats -- just nine sacks and 39 tackles for loss in his career -- but was always a vital part of the Steelers' strong defenses.

Because he didn't have great stats, he was never an All-Pro, and he may never make it into the Hall of Fame, although some believe he should. Still, any Steelers follower understands Hampton's value to the team for many years.

8. G DAVID DECASTRO

Accolades: Two-time first-team All-Pro, one second-team All-Pro, six Pro Bowls.

OK, so he earned more individual accolades than Hampton, so why isn't he above Casey? I went back and forth on this one for a bit because of just that, but ultimately decided that Hampton's value to the Steelers was greater than that of DeCastro.

That's not to take anything away from DeCastro, who was an excellent lineman during his career.

9. TE HEEEEEEATH MILLER

Accolades: Two Super Bowls, two Pro Bowls, Steelers Hall of Honor.

A fan favorite who always seemed to come up with huge catches, Miller was an instrumental part of the offense from his rookie season on. Winning two Super Bowls helps cement his legacy in franchise history.

10. WR SANTONIO HOLMES

Accolades: One Super Bowl, Super Bowl MVP

He made one of the greatest/most significant catches in the history of the game -- on a perfect throw from Roethlisberger -- which won a Super Bowl. For that alone a buddy of mine suggested ranking him higher on this list. But that's the difficulty of doing rankings like these, because do we focus on one play or the overall body of work for years?

Holmes was never a great player for the Steelers or anyone else in the NFL. But oh man, this catch. It will live on forever.