{"id":2297,"date":"2012-11-13T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2012-11-13T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/?p=2297"},"modified":"2014-12-24T05:04:21","modified_gmt":"2014-12-24T05:04:21","slug":"who-was-the-toughest-steeler-ever","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2012\/11\/13\/who-was-the-toughest-steeler-ever\/","title":{"rendered":"Who was the toughest Steeler ever?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"(Photo <\/a>
(Photo by Charles Fox, Pittsburgh Press) <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n

June 20, 1984:<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0A few years ago we wandered over to Heinz Field shortly before a Steelers game and conducted an informal survey. We asked tailgating fans, \u201cWho was the toughest Steeler ever?\u201d The overwhelming favorite: Jack Lambert. We remember his ferocious intensity, and the way he bruised opponents during 11 seasons as a Steeler linebacker. Who can forget that iconic image of a toothless Lambert scowling at the camera?<\/p>\n

Well, here\u2019s another side of the man. During picture day at Steelers training camp in 1984, Lambert cuddled a young fan, who was unidentified in the caption. Gone is the famous Lambert sneer. Here, his appearance is softened by a smile, and the fact that he\u2019s wearing dentures (he had lost his front teeth when he was elbowed in a high school basketball game). He\u2019s a tough guy, certainly, but one with a heart.<\/p>\n

The \u201884 season would be Lambert\u2019s last. He suffered a serious toe injury and played only eight games. In 1990, Lambert was inducted into the Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Here\u2019s another side of Jack Lambert.<\/p>\n

Look at the picturesWho was the toughest Steeler ever?<\/span><\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":2298,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[944],"tags":[964,976,1271,1030,1244],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/11\/tumblr_md6e69ccdz1rr5swxo1_1280.jpg?fit=1280%2C887&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2161,"url":"https:\/\/newsinteractive.post-gazette.com\/thedigs\/2013\/01\/07\/steelers-tight-end-elbie-nickel\/","url_meta":{"origin":2297,"position":0},"title":"Steelers tight end Elbie Nickel","date":"January 7, 2013","format":"gallery","excerpt":"He played for the Steelers from 1947-57 and was for years considered the best tight end in Steelers history. 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