Steve Foley is a career quality starter β a linebacker whose body of work places Foley in the top half of all players at the position historically. The Knox model values sustained contribution over flash, and Foley's career arc reflects exactly that kind of reliable professional-grade performance.
A quality linebacker with a above-average career β a legitimate starter who contributed meaningfully across their career.
Worth 17 points of value above a freely-available replacement linebacker β top 72% of all 4,642 ranked at the position. 4 of 6 seasons cleared the replacement bar, by +4.3 on average.See board β
Seasons above replacement
4 seasons Γ ~4.3 surplus β VORP 17
The full season-by-season grids, joined on one timeline. Every selected stat family stays visible at onceβno tab hopping.
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Defense | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | |||||
| 1998 | β | CIN | 1 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1999 | β | CIN | 14 | β | 29 | 26 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 3.5 | 12.5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2000 | β | CIN | 16 | β | 38 | 29 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 4.0 | 13.0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2001 | β | CIN | 11 | β | 37 | 23 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2003 | β | HOU | 7 | β | 21 | 16 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 |
| 2004 | β | LAC | 16 | β | 53 | 36 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 2 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2005 | β | LAC | 11 | β | 30 | 20 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | β | 0 | 0 |
| Career | β | 76 | β | 208 | 150 | 58 | 14 | 6 | 25.0 | 45.0 | 3 | 28 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
| Season | Age | Team | G | GS | Tkl | Solo | Ast | TFL | QBHits | Sk | Dis | Int | PD | FF | FR | TD | Sfty | VAL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 23 | CIN | 1 | β | β | β | β | β | β | 2.0 | 2.0 | β | β | β | β | β | β | β |
| 1999 | 24 | CIN | 14 | β | 29 | 26 | 3 | 6 | 3 | 3.5 | 12.5 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7.4 |
| 2000 | 25 | CIN | 16 | β | 38 | 29 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 4.0 | 13.0 | 1 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10.7 |
| 2001 | 26 | CIN | 11 | β | 37 | 23 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | β | 0 | 0 | 4.3 |
| 2003 | 28 | HOU | 7 | β | 21 | 16 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | β | 0 | 0 | 3.4 |
| 2004 | 29 | LAC | 16 | β | 53 | 36 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 | 10.0 | 2 | 12 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 15.4 |
| 2005 | 30 | LAC | 11 | β | 30 | 20 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 0 | 3 | 1 | β | 0 | 0 | 6.2 |
| Career | 76 | 208 | 150 | 58 | 14 | 6 | β | β | 3 | 28 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 47.4 |
A solid career by KV-H: a well-rounded profile that scores 50 of 100, era-normalized against tackles/g peers across 6 scored seasons.
Blend 50.2 Γ longevity 1 = KV-H 50Β· confidence 98%
Season-by-season quality (era-relative tackles/g)
Reached 13% of the all-time Sacks leader β a rotational/depth all-time profile at the position.
A 0β100 scale where 100 = matched the all-time leaderat this position. Built only from visible encyclopedia data β career production vs. the all-time leader, plus efficiency (EPA) and comparable-player confidence β so it's a transparent context score, not a subjective rating. Tiers: Elite β₯ 85 Β· Strong β₯ 65 Β· Solid β₯ 45 Β· Depth < 45. Comparable-player confidence: 89%.
Amber = this player (normalized to own peak). Indigo = average linebackers aging curve. Group peak age: 25. Source: StatVault KV-H era (1999+).
College stats are not imported for this profile yet.
StatVault has the verified college attribution (Louisiana-Monroe), 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.
Career teammates and draft class, derived from year-by-year rosters β every name is linked.
Steve inherited the Cincinnati Bengals LB room from Reinard Wilson (1997β2002), and handed it to Takeo Spikes (1998β2002).
Statistical + physical similarity across every player in the database, position-relevant (0β100%).
Last recorded season with LAC
Joined LAC (from HOU)
Joined HOU (from CIN)
Drafted by CIN β Round 3, Pick 75
StatVault's proprietary player intelligence, informed by full career data. How Knox works β
Era-normalized career quality β z-scored against 6-season peers. See all β
Career durability β games played vs. scheduled, across 7 seasons.
Tackles translated to the 2025NFL β each season's standing among its own-era peers, projected onto 2025's scoring environment. Modern-era (1999+) coverage.
| Season | Actual Tackles | Tackles/G | β 2025 Tackles | β 2025 /G |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 29 | 2.1 | 31+2 | 1.8 |
| 2000 | 38 | 2.4 | 29-9 | 1.7 |
| 2001 | 37 | 3.4 | 41+4 | 2.4 |
| 2003 | 21 | 3 | 29+8 | 1.7 |
| 2004 | 53 | 3.3 | 36-17 | 2.1 |
| 2005 | 30 | 2.7 | 24-6 | 1.4 |
Data: nflverse:players, nflverse:player_stats_def, nflverse:draft_picks, wikipedia:season-stats (CC-BY-SA, facts-only) Β· multi-source verified via the StatVault Oracle Β· updated 6/18/2026
Career Value Β· VORP
17 career value over replacement β #3275 all-time of 4,642. 2.8/season above a replacement-level LB.
Pick #75 (Rd 3) Β· CIN Β· 1998 Β· +10 vs expected KV-H
Fan Rating
Rate Steve Foley β All-Time
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Composite score across availability, IR frequency, and injury severity. See all β
Steve inherited the Los Angeles Chargers LB room from Stephen Cooper (2003β2011), and handed it to Randall Godfrey (2004β2006).
The room is reconstructed from arrival order among durable members (β₯4 seasons with the club) at the playerβs position group β a lineage by arrival, not a week-by-week depth chart. Distinct from the league-wide positional GOAT torch.
Junior Seau
LB
88% match
1998 Draft ClassmatesFull class β
Wore 3 distinct franchise crests across 8 seasons (1998β2005) β a true nomad. The crest trail: