Oakland Raiders left guard-for-life Steve Wisniewski (who played for the Silver & Black a decade before nephew Stefen) is another example of a rock-solid offensive lineman who deserves more credit than he currently receives.
Wisniewski spent his entire 13-year career from 1989 to 2001 with the Raiders, and his 206 games played – he started all of them – are tied for 31st-most among all offensive linemen. His 138 PFR AV is tied for 16th-most among these players.
From 1994 to 2001 (PFR’s play-by-play stats only go back to 1994), Wisniewski’s offensive line helped their backfield to the 12th-most rushing yards, 14th-most yards per attempt (3.59), and 9th-best touchdown/first down rate (25.12 percent) on interior runs. Despite only blocking for three 1,000-yard rushers in his career, Wisniewski road graded well for the Raiders, helping Napoleon Kaufman – the most prolific Raiders back in his tenure – to a career 4.90 rushing yards per attempt on 978 attempts.
Wisniewski earned eight Pro Bowl spots and two All-Pro selections in his career, but never really had the recognition during his time in the league as one of the greats. Perhaps he should after his career.