The Last Five Players to Win the Pittsburgh Steelers' MVP

​The Pittsburgh Steelers are among the most successful franchises in National Football League (NFL) history, with six Super Bowl victories in eight appearances. The team has also boasted some of the league's best defenses throughout its history. Surprisingly, they have only had one NFL MVP quarterback, Terry Bradshaw, in 1978. However, Pittsburgh has handed out a team MVP award every year since 1969.

In addition to Bradshaw, who won the team MVP award in 1977 and 1978, cornerback Mel Blount (1975), kicker Gary Anderson (1983), running back Jerome Bettis (1996, 1997, and 2000), and Ben Roethlisberger (2009) earned the distinction. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick won the award in 2022.

A three-time All-Pro safety from Old Bridge, New Jersey, Fitzpatrick finished the 2022 season with 96 tackles, a league-best six interceptions, and 11 defended passes. He finished 10th in the Associated Press (AP) Defensive Player of the Year voting. The Steelers acquired Fitzpatrick from the Miami Dolphins in a September 2019 trade. He had 299 tackles, 17 interceptions, and three forced fumbles in 61 regular season games with the Steelers following the 2022 season.

The 2022 season marked the fourth consecutive year in which a defensive player won the Steelers MVP. Linebacker T.J. Watt won the award in each of the three prior seasons, becoming the first player in franchise history to win the team MVP in three consecutive years. Watt, a five-time Pro Bowl outside linebacker from Pewaukee, Wisconsin, also finished top three in AP Defensive Player of the Year voting in each of those years and won the award in 2021. He finished that season with a league- and career-best 22.5 sacks, 64 tackles, five forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries. Watt also led the league in sacks (15) in 2020.

In 2018 wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster was the last offensive position player to win the Steelers' team MVP. Selected by the Steelers in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft, Smith-Schuster recorded 917 receiving yards as a rookie and followed that up in 2018 with a career-best 1,426 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, earning Pro Bowl recognition. He played five seasons with Pittsburgh before signing with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2022.

Antonio Brown, also a wide receiver, won the Steelers' MVP award for the fourth time in 2017. He previously won in 2011, 2013, and 2015. A 35-year-old native of Miami, Florida, Brown led all receivers in total yards (1,533) and yards per game (109.5) in 2017 and finished second in AP Offensive Player of the Year voting. He also led the league in receiving yards in 2014. Through nine seasons with Pittsburgh, Brown scored 74 touchdowns and registered 11,207 receiving yards. He last played with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021.

Running back Le'Veon Bell won the Steelers' MVP award for the second time in 2016. A second-round pick of the Steelers in the 2013 NFL Draft, Bell finished the 2016 campaign with 1,268 rushing yards, 616 receiving yards, and nine touchdowns. He finished sixth in AP Offensive Player of the Year voting. Bell also won the Steelers' team MVP in 2014. He last played with the Baltimore Ravens and Buccaneers in 2021.

Robert Palley

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