Making fun of the Steelers is all about picking your shots. It's not easy to knock a team that has had so much sustained success over the years, but their 1990 trade with the Dallas Cowboys has to go down as one of the worst draft-day trades of all time.
SB Nation selects... Oh no Pittsburgh!
SB Nation selects combs the history of the NFL draft to bring you some of the most memorable moments in draft history.
James Dator has been covering a wide range of sports for SB Nation for over a decade, with a special focus on the NFL.
Dallas Cowboys receive: 17th overall pick
Pittsburgh Steelers receiver: 21st overall pick, 81st overall pick
There’s nothing wrong with the picks, they’re totally fine. Drop back four spots and pick up a late third round pick. No worries, cool deal.
Talent evaluation is kind of important, especially at the running back position. There’s no way the Steelers would have taken back-to-back rushers in the first round. They were sitting on Tim Worley, who they were convinced would be the answer (spoiler: he wasn’t) and then this happened.
We call this foreshadowing.
With the 17th pick in the NFL draft, the Dallas Cowboys select: Emmitt Smith, running back, Florida
BOOM
Oh this hurts. It hurts ever so much. Worley finished his career in Pittsburgh with 1,338 rushing yards -- roughly 12 TIMES LESS THAN SMITH.
At least the Steelers got a haul in 1990, right? Surely they managed to pick someone who helped ease the sting of losing one of the best running backs of all time.
Eric Green, Tight End, LibertyCraig Veasey, Defensive Tackle, Houston
Ouch. Green had two Pro Bowl seasons before leaving in free agency in 1995 while Emmitt Smith ran for over 1,700 yards and scored three total touchdowns for Dallas in their Super Bowl win over, you guessed it, Pittsburgh.
