GGOATRANK
🇺🇸
American Football · Safety · United States

Steve Atwater

1989–1999 · Two-time Super Bowl champion and one of the hardest hitting safeties ever.

Retired
Ranking model

100% titles, statistics, dominance, longevity and global competition depth.

Pure sporting data
83.2
Cultural & brand footprint 52/100 · total legacy 73.6
Super Bowl titles
2
Pro Bowls
8
Career interceptions
24
Career tackles
1,180
Seasons played
11

Category profile

Dominance
78
Peak
90
Longevity
80
Honours
84
Statistics
86

Career timeline · Touchdowns per season

SeasonTouchdowns per seasonShare of career
19892
19905
19912
19921
19935
19942
19950
19962
19972
19982
19991

Data sources

  • NFL
  • Pro Football Reference
  • Pro Football Hall of Fame

Figures come from public records and are normalised per sport. See the methodology for category weights. Method

Why Steve Atwater ranks #140 in American Football

Steve Atwater ranks 140th among American Football athletes on GOAT Rank and 1531st of 2289 across every sport in the index. The published GOAT Score of 83.2 is the weighted result of five verified category scores: Dominance 78, Peak 90, Longevity 80, Honours 84, Statistics 86. Those categories are normalised against the full American Football reference universe of 381 records, not a shortlist, so the position reflects the whole sport rather than a handful of famous names.

The record covers 1989–1999 with 11 documented competitive seasons. The strongest single season in that series is 1990, which sets the Peak component at 90. Peak is the defining strength of the profile at 90 out of 100, and it carries 20% of the final score. The underlying career record includes super bowl titles 2, pro bowls 8, career interceptions 24, career tackles 1180.

Immediately ahead sits Charles Woodson on 83.2, a gap of 0.0 points. Directly behind is Lynn Swann on 83.2. The position moves whenever the verified record moves: new titles, new seasons or a corrected source all feed straight back into the same formula, and every change is dated on this profile.

Steve Atwater GOAT Score explained

Dominance78/100 · weight 25%
Measures how far Atwater stood above the field while competing. Scored 78/100 against the full American Football cohort.
Peak90/100 · weight 20%
Rates the best sustained stretch of the career, centred on 1990. Scored 90/100.
Longevity80/100 · weight 20%
Rewards staying at that level over time: 10 years of competition and 11 recorded seasons. Scored 80/100.
Honours84/100 · weight 20%
Counts documented titles, majors and awards in the verified record. Scored 84/100.
Statistics86/100 · weight 15%
Normalises the raw career numbers against everyone in the sport reporting the same metric. Scored 86/100.

Steve Atwater — frequently asked

Is Steve Atwater the GOAT?
Not on the current data. Steve Atwater ranks 140th in American Football with a GOAT Score of 83.2, behind Tom Brady on 97.2.
What is Steve Atwater's GOAT Score?
83.2 out of 100. It is the weighted sum of Dominance 78 (25%), Peak 90 (20%), Longevity 80 (20%), Honours 84 (20%), Statistics 86 (15%), computed from the verified career record.
Where does Steve Atwater rank all time?
1531st of 2289 eligible athletes in the cross-sport index, and 140th within American Football.
Steve Atwater vs Charles Woodson: who ranks higher?
Steve Atwater, on 83.2 against Charles Woodson's 83.2 — a margin of 0.0 points.
Compare with Brady