Steel City Underground takes fans back in time to feature events, special moments, and historical times and players in the world of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Steelers Nation. Join us in our “Steelers Throwback Thursday” series as we revisit these moments.
With the start of free agency and a new NFL league year, it’s difficult to remember there was a time when all of the madness of legal tampering periods and headline-stealing signings wasn’t commonplace. It wasn’t long ago that the only way to acquire a player from another team was to make a trade or wait for a player’s release from their current contract.
While the modern era of the NFL is often discussed, the period of unrestricted free agency is frequently overlooked as a turning point. The Pittsburgh Steelers would be at the forefront of this new horizon in the 1990s when one of their players, CB Rod Woodson, along with eight other NFL players sued the league for unrestricted free agency – and won. Woodson received $1.1 million as part of the lawsuit’s settlement.
The league would implement its current free agency system on March 1st, 1993. According to an article from the Los Angeles Times, 484 players became eligible to sign with new teams on this day. Despite not being one of those players becoming a free agent in 1993, Woodson’s contract negotiation history with Pittsburgh was always a tumultuous one, and unrestricted free agency would significantly impact his career.
Woodson was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the 1987 NFL Draft. He sat out of training camp due to a contract dispute that lasted 95 days before signing a four-year, $1.8 million deal in October of 1987. The holdout would be the longest in franchise history until Le’Veon Bell refused to sign his franchise tag tender back in 2018.
Woodson would begin his career as a backup under head coach Chuck Noll but worked his way into the starting lineup as a kick and punt returner following a stellar track and field career that included a bronze medal at the 1987 USA Olympic festival. Woodson would retain his return duties through much of his time with the Steelers, and enter the 1988 season as a starting cornerback.
By 1990 it was time for the two sides to discuss a new deal. The Steelers reportedly offered Woodson a three-year $3 million contract extension that would make him the highest-paid player in team history. Being among the highest-paid players in Pittsburgh would be a recurring theme throughout Woodson’s tenure, especially after QB Neil O’Donnell would supersede his earnings in the coming years.
O’Donnell would sign a new three-year contract worth over $8 million for the 1993 season. Not to be outdone, Woodson would top O’Donnell’s deal with a four-year, $12 million agreement that made Woodson the league’s highest-paid defensive back.
However, Woodson’s performance on the field would justify his earnings. As a three-time All-Pro, he would earn another All-Pro nod and win the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award in 1993, and join the All-Pro team again in 1994 after being named the runner-up in defense of of his DPOY crown.
1995 would be all for naught, mostly, when Woodson sustained a torn ACL in the first game of the season during an attempted tackle of Detroit Lions RB Barry Sanders. According to an AP News archive article, “On September 11, 1995, Woodson underwent reconstructive surgery and had his ACL in his left knee replaced with a patella tendon from his right knee.” He was presumed to be finished for the season, but would make a miraculous return to play in Super Bowl XXX, though in limited action.
1996 would be another turning point in the intersecting paths of the Steelers and Woodson. After falling to 27-17 to the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl XXX, the team made a play at re-signing O’Donnell, but would fail to bring back their starting quarterback. O’Donnell would accept a five-year, $25 million contract with the New York Jets.
By contrast the Steelers gave Woodson a low ball offer of three years, $9 million, which reduced his average-per-season earnings by $1 million from his previous deal. Pittsburgh upped their requests, including a five-year $10 million extension and a five-year $13.5 million offer with incentives and a $500,000 signing bonus. Woodson declined those deals and would return in 1996 for the final year on his current contract.
Woodson would be named an All-Pro again in 1996, but little would anyone know he played his last game in a Steelers uniform in a Divisional Round loss to the New England Patriots.
Following the ’96 season, the Steelers would continue pursuing a new deal with Woodson. The two sides would fail to come to terms on a four-year deal worth $7 million, the lower offer following Woodson’s reconstructive knee surgery in ’95 and multiple injuries the cornerback played through in ’96. At 32-years-old, Woodson would leave the Steelers after a ten-year tenure. He would be replaced by 1997 first round draft pick Chad Scott.
As a free agent, Woodson joined the San Francisco 49ers with a new three-year deal worth $5.1 million.
However, 1997 would be a down year as he wasn’t named to any postseason accolades and was subsequently released the following season. From there, Woodson would sign with the Baltimore Ravens on a similar three-year, $5.7 million contract that included a signing bonus of $3 million. At age 33 he would play as a cornerback, but transitioned to playing free safety the following season in 1999.
The change of position extended Rod’s career, as he would be named to the Pro Bowl in 1999, his first since 1996. He would continue on with the Ravens for several more seasons, winning a Super Bowl with Baltimore in 2000. In 2001, the Ravens declined an option to keep Woodson, but ultimately brought the 36-year-old back on a five-year deal. However, the team would release Woodson in 2002 for salary cap reasons.
Woodson would find a new home with the Oakland Raiders, continuing his career as a free safety and at 37 years of age, making the NFL All-Pro team once again after helping lead his new team to the Super Bowl. (The Raiders would fall to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 48-21.) His playing time would wind down following the 2003 season when he failed a physical following another knee surgery.
Woodson left the NFL after 17 seasons among the leaders in numerous statistical categories. He was named to 11 Pro Bowls, 9 All-Pro teams (6 first teams, 3 second teams) was the 1993 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, and was named to the NFL’s 1990s All-Decade Team, 75th Anniversary All-Time Team, and 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. Woodson would be enshrined in both the Pro and Collegiate Football Halls of Fame. The Pittsburgh Steelers also honored his legacy with the team in recent years by naming him to their Hall of Honor.
Throwback Thursday: Rod Woodson and the Steelers start of unrestricted free agency appeared first on Steel City Underground.
