Athletes have dominated the competition on "Dancing With The Stars," with five wins in the previous 11 seasons. But it has been more than seven seasons since a male athlete -- race driver Helio Castroneves --walked away with the Mirror Ball Trophy.

If history is any guide, the best bet to break through in the new season could be Steelers receiver Hines Ward.

NFL players have consistently performed well on "Dancing With The Stars," with Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith winning the third season. Jerry Rice, Jason Taylor and Warren Sapp each finished second, while Lawrence Taylor, Michael Irvin, Chad Ochocinco and Kurt Warner all advanced past the halfway mark of their seasons.

If Ward wins, he would match Smith's parlay of a Super Bowl MVP and a DWTS championship.

Sugar Ray Leonard is the other notable athlete in the cast that was revealed Monday. Leonard showed fancy footwork throughout his career, particularly in his memorable upset of Marvelous Marvin Hagler, but boxers have struggled on the show. Evander Holyfield was eliminated in the second week of the premiere season, while Floyd Mayweather Jr. lasted just four weeks. Women's champ Laila Ali, though, did take third place her season, which was won by Olympic speed-skating champ Apolo Ohno.

Pro wrestler Chris Jericho should be a strong contender, if only for the fact that he is used to choreographed performances and understands how to work the crowd. Stacy Keibler of the WWE took third place behind Rice in the second season of DWTS. Jericho could also pull votes from two factions, the wrestling crowd and hockey fans. His dad, Ted Irvine, played 10 seasons in the NHL.

Rapper Romeo played two seasons of college basketball at USC, but that's probably a generous description. Romeo barely logged 20 minutes of game time with the Trojans. Romeo, previously known as Lil' Romeo, should be familiar with how the show operates. His dad, rapper Master P, was a contestant in the second season and made it to the fourth round.

The most recent athletes to win DWTS were Olympic champions Shawn Johnson and Kristi Yamaguchi in the springs of 2008 and 2009, respectively.

The new season starts March 21.