John Fiala
Solid Contributor
Height6'3"
Weight237 lb
BornNov 25, 1973
Age52
CollegeWashingtonSee College Stats
Rookie yr1998
Draft1997 · Rd 6, Pick 166 · MIA
A linebacker with a developmental — a rotational or backup contributor who filled their role reliably.
Career Value · VORP
VORP 4 · #3997 · Role PlayerWorth 4 points of value above a freely-available replacement linebacker — top 87% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 2 of 3 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +2 on average.See board →
Seasons above replacement
2 cleared
1 replaced
Beat replacement (adds to VORP) Below it — adds 0, never a debit
47
Replacement
the KC-H bar
→
2
Seasons over
cleared the bar
×
+2
Avg surplus
peak +3
2 seasons × ~2 surplus ≈ VORP 4
Combined Season Grid
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at once—no tab hopping.
1 grid split in one view
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Defense | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | |||||
| 1998 | — | PIT | 16 | — | 18 | 12 | — | — | — | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 1999 | — | PIT | 16 | — | 18 | 10 | — | — | — | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | — | — |
| 2000 | — | PIT | 5 | — | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2001 | — | PIT | 3 | — | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2002 | — | PIT | 2 | — | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 |
| Career | — | 42 | — | 48 | 29 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
Defense
KV-H Anatomy
KV-H 37 · Depth / RotationalA depth / rotational career by KV-H: a remarkably steady profile that scores 37 of 100, era-normalized against tackles/g peers across 3 scored seasons, with a short career trimming the score.
45
Sustained
career value
×.6
39
Peak
best 3 seasons
×.4
×0.86
Longevity
career length
Blend 42.6 × longevity 0.86 = KV-H 37· confidence 88%
What builds the career mark of 45
On-field 27.2
Availability 17.8
On-field production Staying available
Season-by-season quality (era-relative tackles/g)
1998bestavg 392000
Career Aging Trajectory
vs. position group average · KV-H basisAmber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average linebackers aging curve. Group peak age: 25. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
Postseason Career
2 playoff gamesDefense
Tkl8Solo1Ast7PD1
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Washington), but no parsed college box-score table is present in this profile artifact. The section stays here so every profile has a consistent college-stats landing point without fabricating unavailable rows.
Reference Graph
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters — every name is linked.
Top Teammates
Hines WardWR5yJerome BettisRB5yDeshea TownsendDB5yDewayne WashingtonDB5yJason GildonLB5yMark BruenerTE5yJosh MillerP5yLee FlowersDB5yKordell StewartQB5yChris Fuamatu-Ma'afalaRB5yJoey PorterOLB4yAaron SmithDE4yEarl HolmesMLB4yChad ScottCB4yJon WitmanFB4yAmos ZereoueRB4yJerame TumanTE4yMatt CushingTE4yMike VrabelOLB3yKimo von OelhoffenDT3yBrent AlexanderFS3yLevon KirklandMLB3yPlaxico BurressWR3yKevin HenryDE3y
1997 Draft Class· this player went #166
Similar Players
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0–100%).
Movementderived from season history
- 2002final season
Last recorded season with PIT
- 1998team change
Joined PIT (from MIA)
- 1997draft
Drafted by MIA — Round 6, Pick 166
Athletic & Unique Profile
verified measurements and curated source-tagged facts6'3" / 237 lb
Frame
Knox
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works →
Historical Knox · KV-H
Era-normalized career quality — z-scored against 3-season peers. See all →
37
peak 39
Season Report Cards· KV-H era-normalized per season
C+1998
C1999
F2000
Availability
Career durability — games played vs. scheduled, across 5 seasons.
53%
Era Translator
Tackles translated to the 2025NFL — each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Tackles | Tackles/G | → 2025 Tackles | → 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 18 | 1.1 | 20+2 | 1.2 |
| 1999 | 18 | 1.1 | 14-4 | 0.8 |
| 2000 | 5 | 1 | 2-3 | 0.1 |
Data: nflverse:players, nflverse:player_stats_def, nflverse:draft_picks, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only), nfl.com:official-stats (facts-only reference), nfl.com:official-stats (games-played, facts-only reference) · multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle · updated 6/18/2026
Career Value · VORP
4 career value over replacement — #3997 all-time of 4,642. 1.3/season above a replacement-level LB.
Draft OutcomeValue ↑
Pick #166 (Rd 6) · MIA · 1997 · +9.8 vs expected KV-H
37actual
27.2 expected · Δ+9.8
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