Steelers Spectacular Shooting Star Tommy Maddox Provided Lasting Memories During 2002 Playoffs For A Generation Of Fans

The Pittsburgh Steelers won the last of four Super Bowls in six seasons during the 1970's by beating the Los Angeles Rams in Super Bowl XIV. It was the crowning achievement of the team of the decade and Steelers fans were riding as high as they ever have. The black and gold seemed invincible and there was no reason for fans to believe the dynasty was coming to an end at the beginning of a new decade in January of 1980.

It did end though, the retirements and injuries over the next few years took a toll. The Steelers passed on Dan Marino in the 1983 draft and wandered in the wilderness after a surprise last-gasp championship game appearance against the Miami Dolphins and Marino in 1984. Chuck Noll never coached in a Super Bowl again and he went 2-4 in the playoffs during his last 11 seasons in Pittsburgh. Bill Cowher replaced him to start the 1992 season.

It took 25 years for the Steelers to win one for the thumb and a dizzying quarterback carrousel ensued between Terry Bradshaw’s retirement in 1984 and Ben Roethlisberger’s arrival in 2004. The Steelers used 14 different starting quarterbacks during the two decades between the two Hall of Fame quarterbacks with varying success. The final quarterback between Bradshaw and Roethlisberger was Tommy Maddox and if it was not for an elbow injury against the Baltimore Ravens in 2004, the Steelers may have taken a very different route to one for the thumb.

When Roethlisberger was drafted in 2004 by the Steelers out of Miami of Ohio, he was an exciting prospect, but was considered a raw product. Maddox was the established starter who had mercifully ended the Kordell Stewart era permanently in Pittsburgh after an exciting comeback victory in the 2002 playoffs.

The Steelers were fed up with Stewart’s inconsistency and parted company after the amazing playoff performances in the 2002 postseason. Maddox left no doubt about who was going to be the quarterback in Pittsburgh going forward with a furious 29-point second half against the Cleveland Browns in a Wild Card weekend victory. He followed that performance up with a thrilling divisional round overtime loss to the Tennessee Titans 34-31.

Maddox, who was nicknamed “Tommy Gun” by Myron Cope, led the highest-flying offense in Pittsburgh since Bradshaw. After two decades of three yards and a cloud of dust, the Steelers were throwing the ball all over the lot and Maddox was everyone’s favorite redemption story not named Kurt Warner.

Maddox was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the 1992 draft as the heir apparent to John Elway. The move was an absolute failure as Elway would play six more seasons and win two Super Bowls. Maddox was pressed into action during his rookie season and performed miserably going 0-4 and Broncos fans were furious. The Denver brass agreed, and it was the last mistake Dan Reeves would make in Denver as he was run out of town on a rail.

Maddox was traded in 1994 heading to the Rams after the Broncos dumped him for a fourth-round draft pick. After one season as a backup, the Rams released him and he caught on with Reeves, who was now coaching the New York Giants. After fumbling excessively at every opportunity, he got with the Giants and was released during the preseason in 1996. Maddox was out of football until signing briefly with the Atlanta Falcons in Reeves's first season as their head coach. He was cut after one preseason game by his greatest champion and his NFL career seemed to be over in 1997.

Maddox became an insurance agent in Dallas, TX with Allstate. He sold insurance and volunteered his time coaching at his alma mater, L.D. Bell High School. His professional football career was revived by the New Jersey Red Dogs of the Arena Football League who asked him to return to football, and he accepted. After one season with the Red Dogs, Maddox played well enough to be asked to join the inaugural season of the XFL with the Los Angeles Xtreme.

Maddox was supposed to be the backup quarterback for the Xtreme who selected Scott Milanovich with their first pick in the XFL draft. Maddox beat him out and led the Xtreme to the XFL championship and was the MVP of the league. The league folded, but his performance piqued the interest of the Steelers who signed him to backup Kordell Stewart and come back to the NFL. He was a backup in 2001 on the 13-3 Steelers team that lost to the New England Patriots at the beginning of the Spygate controversy.

The next season, the Steelers started slowly with Stewart and Cowher, who had often quarreled with Stewart, made a surprise move. He inserted Maddox at the end of the Week 4 game against the Browns. Maddox led a comeback victory in a precursor of what was to come in the playoffs and was immediately named the starter. He remained in the role for all but two of the remaining 12 games going 7-3-1.

The Steelers finished the 2002 season 10-5-1 with Maddox. He was playing inspired football and showed he was capable of extreme highs with 473 yards in a 34-34 tie with the Atlanta Falcons and devastating lows like the 24-6 loss to the expansion Houston Texans where he took six sacks, lost a fumble and threw two devastating interceptions. Watching Maddox play was an edge-of-your-seat thrill ride in 2002 that was the most fun Steelers fans had in years.

Steelers QB Tommy Maddox Was Furious With Bill Cowher When They Drafted Ben Roethlisberger

The Steelers and Maddox had an uneven season in 2003, but after stumbling early, they played much better down the stretch. Pittsburgh dug such a deep hole early in the season, they could only muster a 6-10 record and it put them in position to draft Roethlisberger. Maddox held the brilliant rookie off in training camp and was 2-0 when he faced the Ravens in Week 3 of the 2004 season. Maddox had not been spectacular during the early season, but the Steelers had reigned in his freewheeling style, and it was producing wins, but he was lost for the season in game three. The heralded rookie went 13-0 in relief and that was that.

Maddox was the primary backup for Roethlisberger during the Super Bowl run in 2005, but went 0-2 as a starter in relief. After earning his championship ring, he was released by the Steelers. He had a tryout with the Oakland Raiders and Dallas Cowboys during the 2006 season, but they elected not to sign him, and his football career was over.

Maddox only played five seasons in Pittsburgh and started 32 games. He posted a 15-16-1 record as a starter and went 1-1 in two of the most thrilling playoff games you will ever see. Maddox has not returned to football as a coach or broadcaster since his retirement, but he did coach high school baseball in Texas and was part of a state championship team in 2016.

He is largely forgotten by younger fans who didn’t see him play and the man he replaced now gets more credit than he deserves for being ahead of his time. Steelers fans of the era know that the Stewart love is revisionist history. If you lived through the 25-year desert that was Steelers football from 1980 to 2004, then you can appreciate just how beautiful the shooting star of Maddox was to a generation of frustrated fans.

Maddox was so unpredictable that Bill Belichick could have filmed him with the Steelers' permission, and they would not have been able to figure out what he was going to do. If he doesn’t get hurt against the Ravens, maybe the Steelers would have seven trophies instead of six and Belichick would have stopped filming other teams out of sheer frustration. 

What do you think, Steeler Nation? Do you remember Tommy Maddox, and would he have made a difference in the playoffs in 2004? Please comment below, or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.