His name is synonymous with special teams excellence, but not in the way most think of special teams. For many, special teams are about kickers, punters, and returners. And while Tasker did serve as a more than capable returner in his career, he earned his seven trips to the Pro Bowl the hard way. Tasker was the man entrusted with stopping all those kickers, punters, and returners, and no one in the league was more feared.
"On special teams, he turned into a terror," said Tasker's Hall of Fame head coach Marv Levy. "He played the game the way it should be played."
In an era of flashy return men like Mel Gray, Eric Metcalf, Brian Mitchell, and Pro Football Hall of Famers Tim Brown, Deion Sanders, and Rod Woodson, he was their nemesis.
Steve Tasker was the kick and punt coverage specialist they never wanted to see headed their way because their success on returns was often dramatically stunted when he was on the field.
For punters around the league, the fear was just as real. If there was a compromise in your protection scheme, or you overset as a protector in one direction or the other, Tasker would exploit it and be in front of your punter in under two seconds often sending his punt in the other direction.
"He played an incredibly vital role on that team and that team dominated the AFC for four or five years," said former Sports Illustrated columnist, Don Banks.
Hall of Fame head coach Bill Parcells admitted to devising game plans with his special teams coaches to specifically neutralize the game wrecking exploits of Steve Tasker on special teams. He routinely deployed two jammers on Tasker's side to make certain he wouldn't get down the field to make a play on their punt returner.
Blocked punts were what Tasker was most known for with seven in his career, including one in Super Bowl XXVII. His blocked punts were rarely just a turnover on downs when he did so. Whether it was blocking Mike Horan's punt for a safety against Denver in 1987, his blocked punt against Pittsburgh in 1988 that teammate Rob Riddick returned for a touchdown, or the block he had against the Raiders that was returned by teammate James Williams for a go-ahead score with seven minutes left in the fourth quarter, Tasker's exploits on special teams put points directly on the board for Buffalo.
But the most overlooked area of Tasker's special teams achievements was forced fumbles. When covering kicks and punts, Tasker was not only the first man down the field to make a tackle for no gain. Very often he'd strip the ball for a turnover as well.
He had seven in his career with the most instrumental coming in the AFC Divisional Playoff win in 1988 against the Oilers. With the Bills offense unable to kill the clock with two minutes remaining in regulation while clinging to a 17-10 lead, they punted, and Tasker forced Houston returner Curtis Duncan to fumble the ball. The Bills recovered deep in Oilers' territory and the offense killed the remaining time on the clock to advance to the AFC Championship Game.
His forced fumble while tackling Hall of Famer, Tim Brown for no gain on a punt in the 1990 Sunday Night game, at the Raiders' 15-yard line allowed the Bills to tie the score early at seven before his aforementioned blocked punt turned the game in Buffalo's favor.
Tasker's eighth career forced fumble took place in the 1993 Pro Bowl. Early in the third quarter in a tie game (13-13), Cardinals return man Johnny Bailey gets past Tasker after he's knocked to the ground by two blockers, Tasker gets to his feet, runs Bailey down from behind and punches the ball out. The ball was recovered by AFC punter Rohn Stark.
Tasker later blocked a potential go-ahead 52-yard field goal by Hall of Famer Morten Andersen, and it was returned by Raiders CB Terry McDaniel for a go-ahead touchdown for the AFC. The AFC would go on to win in overtime thanks in part to Tasker's tackle of NFC kick returner Deion Sanders on the 16-yard line after the NFC won the toss and chose to receive.
Late in his career, Tasker played more of a role on offense when regular starters were out injured and produced. Buffalo Hall of Fame QB Jim Kelly had long wanted Tasker in the lineup on offense due largely to his precise route running, but his head coach didn't want to lose Tasker's game-changing ability on special teams.
"Jim Kelly would lobby coach Levy to let Tasker play receiver, but Levy wouldn't let him," said Giants Super Bowl winning WR Phil McConkey. "Most coaches don't want to waste their good players on special teams. Well Marv Levy didn't want to waste Steve Tasker in their regular offense."
The Pro Football Hall of Fame recognized Tasker in 2000, when he was voted to be a member of the All-Time NFL Team. He was listed among 26 other players – from the likes of Jim Brown to Walter Payton – as the best of the best players in the history of the game.
"If you're going to say how important special teams are and the player that is the best at that craft is not in the Hall of Fame, then you're talking out of both sides of your mouth," said former Kansas City offensive lineman, Tim Grunhard. "If Steve Tasker is the best special teams player ever, which I think he is… then he's first ballot."
For enshrined Hall of Fame special teamers like Andersen, Ray Guy, Devin Hester, and Jan Stenerud, their impact was easy to see. They had the ball in their hands at the start or end in every special teams play they participated. For Tasker there was far more work involved to make the same kind of impact. He had to run 40 yards or more and find the ball.
For the entirety of his 13-year career Tasker impacted games in his role on special teams more uniquely and better than anyone in the history of the game. And it's what makes him exceedingly worthy of enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
