The Steelers draft like Tom Hanks makes movies. When they're good ("Cast Away," "Forrest Gump"), they're brilliant. When they're bad ("Joe Versus the Volcano," "The Bonfire of the Vanities"), you're advised to avert your eyes.

So for every Joe Greene or Mike Webster -- a pair of Hall of Famers who shaped the Steelers' emergence as an NFL dynasty -- they throw in stinkers like Huey Richardson and Tim Worley.

Hey, as they say in NASCAR, that's draftin'.

Best draft picks:

1. DT Joe Greene, North Texas State (4th overall in 1969): Greene was certainly no reach, but the Steelers had plenty of needs in the 1969 draft and could have gone in nearly any direction. The selection of Greene set the stage for a decade of dominance by the Steel Curtain defense and put the team in position to take Terry Bradshaw No. 1 overall the following year.
Telling statistic: Holds the franchise single-game record with five sacks against Houston in 1972.
Next player taken: Cincinnati QB Greg Cook, by Cincinnati.

2. LB Andy Russell, Missouri (220th overall in 1963): Talk about a steal. Russell went in the 16th round and went on to become a seven-time Pro Bowl selection. Unfortunately the Steelers were so bad for most of his career that the genius of this pick often goes unnoticed.
Telling statistic: Intercepted 18 passes and recovered 10 fumbles in 168 games.
Next player taken: Miami (Ohio) DB Lowell Caylor, by Chicago.

3. C Mike Webster, Wisconsin (125th overall in 1974): Webster became the dominant center of his era and the anchor of the Steelers' Super Bowl offensive lines. He came at the relatively dirt cheap cost of a fifth-round pick and did nothing but repay the Steelers in spades over a brilliant 15-year career in Pittsburgh.
Telling statistic: Played in seven Pro Bowls and missed only six games in 15 seasons.
Next player taken: Louisville DT Richard Bishop, by Cincinnati.

4. WR John Stallworth, Alabama A&M (82nd overall in 1974): Another middle-round gem from the 1974 draft, Stallworth joined Webster in the Pro Football Hall of Fame despite his modest draft position. He retired as the franchise leader in receptions, receiving yards, receiving touchdowns and 100-yard receiving games.
Telling statistic: His 24.4-yard receiving average set a Super Bowl record.
Next player taken: Michigan WR Clint Haselrig, by San Francisco.

5. CB Mel Blount, Southern (53rd overall in 1970): Generally regarded as one of the smartest, toughest defensive backs in league history, Blount was a Hall of Fame selection and is credited with helping change NFL pass defense rules because of his physical style.
Telling statistic: His 57 interceptions remain a franchise record.
Next player taken: UCLA WR George Farmer, by Chicago.

Worst draft picks:

1. LB Huey Richardson, Florida (15th overall in 1991): Appeared in five games in his only season with the Steelers, who released him. Enough said.
Next player taken: San Diego State QB Dan McGwire, by Seattle.

2. G John Reinstra, Temple (9th overall, 1986): The Steelers wasted their highest draft pick of the post-Super Bowl run on Reinstra, who never developed into a dependable lineman.
Next player taken: Ohio State RB Keith Byars, by Philadelphia.

3. T Jamaine Stephens, North Carolina A&T (29th overall in 1996): Billed as a replacement for departed All-Pro Leon Searcy, Stephens never got in shape and never made an impact, aside from his memorable collapse during training camp in 1999, after which the Steelers gave up and cut him.
Next player taken: Penn State T Andre Johnson, by Washington.

4. RB Tim Worley, Georgia (7th overall in 1989): Not only did Worley never become a reliable ball carrier, he developed the reputation as a fumbler, then had his career derailed by a drug problem.
Next player taken: Pitt DE Burt Grossman, by San Diego.

5. WR Troy Edwards, Louisiana Tech (13th overall in 1999): Bill Cowher didn't blow a lot of first-rounds, but he blew this one on a player whose best season came as a rookie, when he 61 pases for 714 yards and five touchdowns. He was quickly surpassed by Hines Ward and Plaxico Burress the next two seasons and was gone by 2001.
Next player taken: Brigham Young T John Tait, by Kansas City.

-- John Dudley