1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season

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The Pittsburgh Steelers entered the 1975 season defending their AFC Central and Super Bowl IX titles from the 1974 season. Throughout the 1975 season they not only improved on their 10-3-1 record from the previous year, but once again won the AFC Central Division Title and their second franchise championship, in Super Bowl X.

During the team's divisional round playoff game against the Baltimore Colts, sportscaster Myron Cope urged fans to bring yellow dish towels to the game with them in order to support the team. The gimmick, originally a one-shot deal, was a surprise hit, and a longtime Steeler tradition, the Terrible Towel, was invented.

1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season
Head Coach	Chuck Noll
Home Field	Three Rivers Stadium
Results
Record	12-2
Place	1st AFC Central
Playoff Finish	W Super Bowl X
Timeline
Previous Season	Next Season
1974	1976

Contents 1 Offseason 1.1 NFL Draft 2 Preseason 2.1 Schedule 2.2 Game Summaries 3 Regular Season 3.1 Schedule 3.2 Game Summaries 3.2.1 Week 1 (Sunday September 21, 1975): San Diego Chargers 3.2.2 Week 2 (Sunday September 28, 1975): Buffalo Bills 3.2.3 Week 3 (Sunday October 5, 1975): Cleveland Browns 3.2.4 Week 4 (Sunday October 12, 1975): Denver Broncos 3.2.5 Week 5 (Sunday October 19, 1975): Chicago Bears 3.2.6 Week 6 (Sunday October 26, 1975): Green Bay Packers 3.2.7 Week 7 (Sunday November 2, 1975): Cincinnati Bengals 3.2.8 Week 8 (Sunday November 9, 1975): Houston Oilers 3.2.9 Week 9 (Sunday November 16, 1975): Kansas City Chiefs 3.2.10 Week 10 (Monday November 24, 1975): Houston Oilers 3.2.11 Week 11 (Sunday November 30, 1975): New York Jets 3.2.12 Week 12 (Sunday December 7, 1975): Cleveland Browns 3.2.13 Week 13 (Saturday December 13, 1975): Cincinnati Bengals 3.2.14 Week 14 (Saturday December 20, 1975): Los Angeles Rams 4 Postseason 4.1 Postseason Schedule 4.2 Game Summaries 4.2.1 AFC Divisional Playoff (Saturday December 27, 1975): vs. Baltimore Colts 4.2.2 AFC Championship (Sunday January 4, 1976): vs. Oakland Raiders 4.2.3 Super Bowl X (Sunday January 18, 1976): vs. Dallas Cowboys 5 Awards, Honors, and Records 6 References

[edit] Offseason

[edit] NFL Draft

[edit] Preseason

[edit] Schedule

[edit] Game Summaries

[edit] Regular Season

[edit] Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Game Site
1	Sunday September 21	San Diego Chargers	W 37-0	San Diego Stadium
2	Sunday September 28	Buffalo Bills	L 30-21	Three Rivers Stadium
3	Sunday October 5	Cleveland Browns	W 42-6	Cleveland Municipal Stadium
4	Sunday October 12	Denver Broncos	W 20-9	Three Rivers Stadium
5	Sunday October 19	Chicago Bears	W 34-3	Three Rivers Stadium
6	Sunday October 26	Green Bay Packers	W 16-13	Lambeau Field
7	Sunday November 2	Cincinnati Bengals	W 30-24	Riverfront Stadium
8	Sunday November 9	Houston Oilers	W 24-17	Three Rivers Stadium
9	Sunday November 16	Kansas City Chiefs	W 28-3	Three Rivers Stadium
10	Monday November 24	Houston Oilers	W 32-9	Houston Astrodome
11	Sunday November 30	New York Jets	W 20-7	Shea Stadium
12	Sunday December 7	Cleveland Browns	W 31-17	Three Rivers Stadium
13	Sunday December 14	Cincinnati Bengals	W 35-14	Three Rivers Stadium
14	Saturday December 20	Los Angeles Rams	L 10-3	Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum

[edit] Game Summaries

[edit] Week 1 (Sunday September 21, 1975): San Diego Chargers

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	10	10	3	14	37
Chargers	0	0	0	0	0

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 35,853
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 29
• Pittsburgh - Lewis 40 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Mullins recovered fumble in end zone (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 25
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 38
• Pittsburgh - Stallworth 38 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Collier 7 run (Gerela kick)

[edit] Week 2 (Sunday September 28, 1975): Buffalo Bills

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bills	0	10	13	7	30
Steelers	0	0	7	14	21

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,438
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

O.J. Simpson ran for 227 yards, including an 88 yard touchdown run, as the Bills upset the Steelers. Buffalo also scored on a lateral return after a Terry Bradshaw fumble. The Bills opened the game with 23 unanswered points. The Steelers made a second half comeback behind Joe Gilliam (Bradshaw was benched), but it wasn't enough.

Scoring Drives:

• Buffalo - Leypoldt 37 yard FG
• Buffalo - Kadish 26 yard fumble return
• Buffalo - Gant 7 yard pass from Ferguson
• Buffalo - Simpson 88 yard run
• Pittsburgh - Harris 2 yard run
• Buffalo - Chandler 28 yard pass from Ferguson
• Pittsburgh - Grossman 20 yard pass from Gilliam
• Pittsburgh - Harris 1 yard run

[edit] Week 3 (Sunday October 5, 1975): Cleveland Browns

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	7	21	0	14	42
Browns	0	0	0	6	6

at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 73,217
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - Stallworth 3 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Harris 1 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Collier 1 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Swann 43 pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick)
• Cleveland - McKinnis 7 run (kick failed)
• Pittsburgh - Garrett 45 pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Harrison 3 run (Gerela kick)

[edit] Week 4 (Sunday October 12, 1975): Denver Broncos

	1	2	3	4	Total
Broncos	3	6	0	0	9
Steelers	7	10	0	3	20

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,164
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Denver - FG Turner 22
• Pittsburgh - Swann 43 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Swann 9 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 39
• Denver - FG Turner 39
• Denver - FG Turner 36
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 28

[edit] Week 5 (Sunday October 19, 1975): Chicago Bears

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	0	3	0	0	3
Steelers	0	10	10	14	34

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 47,579
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Chicago - FG Thomas 32
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 37
• Pittsburgh - Harrison 1 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 18
• Pittsburgh - Harris 3 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Bleier 3 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Bradshaw 1 run (Gerela kick)

[edit] Week 6 (Sunday October 26, 1975): Green Bay Packers

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	3	10	0	3	16
Packers	0	6	7	0	13

at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 52,258
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 19
• Green Bay - Brockington 2 run (kick blocked)
• Pittsburgh - Collier 94 kickoff return (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 19
• Green Bay - Brockington 5 run (Danelo kick)
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 29

[edit] Week 7 (Sunday November 2, 1975): Cincinnati Bengals

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	0	10	13	7	30
Bengals	3	0	0	21	24

at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 58,418
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Cincinnati - FG Green 23
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 42
• Pittsburgh - Swann 37 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Bleier 3 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Swann 25 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed)
• Cincinnati - Joiner 34 pass from Anderson (Green kick)
• CIncinnati - E. Johnson 3 pass from Anderson (Green kick)
• Pittsburgh - Bradshaw 1 run (Gerela kick)
• Cincinnati - Myers 22 pass from Anderson (Green kick)

[edit] Week 8 (Sunday November 9, 1975): Houston Oilers

	1	2	3	4	Total
Oilers	0	7	3	7	17
Steelers	10	7	0	7	24

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,460
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 22
• Pittsburgh - Swann 8 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Houston - Coleman 3 run (Butler kick)
• Pittsburgh - L. Brown 6 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Houston - FG Butler 48
• Houston - Willis 1 run (Butler kick)
• Pittsburgh - Stallworth 21 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)

[edit] Week 9 (Sunday November 16, 1975): Kansas City Chiefs

	1	2	3	4	Total
Chiefs	0	3	0	0	3
Steelers	0	7	14	7	28

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 48,803
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Kansas City - FG Stenerud 32
• Pittsburgh - Swann 42 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Harrison 10 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Stallworth 16 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Collier 21 run (Gerela kick)

[edit] Week 10 (Monday November 24, 1975): Houston Oilers

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	2	13	3	14	32
Oilers	0	3	0	6	9

at the Houston Astrodome, Houston, Texas

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,947
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - Safety, White tackled Pastorini in end zone
• Houston - FG Butler 27
• Pittsburgh - Harris 4 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Swann 18 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed)
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 30
• Pittsburgh - Fuqua 13 run (Gerela kick)
• Houston - Burrough 59 pass from Pastorini (kick failed)
• Pittsburgh - Harris 13 run (Gerela kick)

[edit] Week 11 (Sunday November 30, 1975): New York Jets

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	0	10	10	0	20
Jets	0	0	0	7	7

at Shea Stadium, Flushing, New York

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 52,618
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 26
• Pittsburgh - Harris 44 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Lewis 8 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 19
• New York Jets - Barkum 6 pass from Namath (Leahy kick)

[edit] Week 12 (Sunday December 7, 1975): Cleveland Browns

	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	3	14	0	0	17
Steelers	7	3	14	7	31

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 47,962
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Cleveland - FG Cockroft 26
• Pittsburgh - Harris 3 run (Gerela kick)
• Cleveland - Pruitt 1 run (Cockroft kick)
• Cleveland - W. Miller 17 fumble return (Cockroft kick)
• Pittsburgh - Swann 3 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Swann 18 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Harris 8 run (Gerela kick)

[edit] Week 13 (Saturday December 13, 1975): Cincinnati Bengals

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bengals	0	7	0	7	14
Steelers	14	7	7	7	35

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 48,889
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - Swann 3 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Thomas 21 lateral from Lambert after fumble recovery (Gerela kick)
• Cincinnati - Fritts 1 run (Green kick)
• Pittsburgh - Harris 10 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Bradshaw 7 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Harris 2 run (Gerela kick)
• Cincinnati - Curtis 1 pass from Anderson (Green kick)

[edit] Week 14 (Saturday December 20, 1975): Los Angeles Rams

	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	3	0	0	0	3
Rams	0	3	0	7	10

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 69,389
• Referee:
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 20
• Los Angeles - FG Dempsey 26
• Los Angeles - Jaworski 5 run (Dempsey kick)

[edit] Postseason

[edit] Postseason Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	TV	Game Site
Divisional	Saturday December 27	Baltimore Colts	W 28-10	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium
Championship	Sunday January 4	Oakland Raiders	W 16-10	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium
Super Bowl X	Sunday January 18	Dallas Cowboys	W 21-17	CBS	Miami Orange Bowl

[edit] Game Summaries

[edit] AFC Divisional Playoff (Saturday December 27, 1975): vs. Baltimore Colts

	1	2	3	4	Total
Colts	0	7	3	0	10
Steelers	7	0	7	14	28

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time: 12:30 PM EST
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,557
• Referee:
• TV announcers: (NBC)

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - Harris 8 run (Gerela kick)
• Baltimore - Doughty 5 pass from Domres (Linhart kick)
• Baltimore - FG Linhart 21
• Pittsburgh - Bleier 7 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Bradshaw 2 run (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh - Russell 93 fumble return (Gerela kick)

[edit] AFC Championship (Sunday January 4, 1976): vs. Oakland Raiders

	1	2	3	4	Total
Raiders	0	0	0	10	10
Steelers	0	3	0	13	16

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time: 12:30 PM EST
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 50,609
• Referee: Ben Dreith
• TV announcers: (NBC) Curt Gowdy (play by play), Al DeRogatis & Don Meredith (color commentators)

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 36
• Pittsburgh - Harris 25 run (Gerela kick)
• Oakland - Siani 14 pass from Stabler (Blanda kick)
• Pittsburgh - Stallworth 20 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed)
• Oakland - FG Blanda 41

[edit] Super Bowl X (Sunday January 18, 1976): vs. Dallas Cowboys

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cowboys	7	3	0	7	17
Steelers	7	0	0	14	21

at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

• Game time: 2:00 PM EST
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 80,187
• Referee: Norm Schachter
• TV announcers: (CBS) Pat Summerall (play by play), Tom Brookshier (color commentator)

Scoring Drives:

• Dallas - D. Pearson 29 pass from Staubach (Fritsch kick)
• Pittsburgh - Grossman 7 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)
• Dallas - FG Fritsch 36
• Pittsburgh - Safety, Harrison blocked punt through end zone
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 36
• Pittsburgh - FG Gerela 18
• Pittsburgh - Swann 64 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed)
• Dallas - P. Howard 34 pass from Staubach (Fritsch kick) Lynn Swann earns MVP award catching 4 receptions for 161 yards.

[edit] Awards, Honors, and Records

• Mel Blount, National Football League Defensive Player of the Year Award
• Lynn Swann, Super Bowl Most Valuable Player

[edit] References

v • d • e Pittsburgh Steelers/Pirates The Franchise Franchise • History • Seasons • Players • Statistics Stadiums Forbes Field • Pitt Stadium • Three Rivers Stadium • Heinz Field Culture Terrible Towel • Rooney Family • Myron Cope • Steely McBeam Lore Immaculate Reception • Steel Curtain • Blitzburgh • Immaculate Redemption • Browns-Steelers Rivalry • The Steagles • Card-Pitt Head Coaches Douds • DiMelio • Bach • McNally • Kiesling • Bell • Donelli • Kiesling • Leonard • Sutherland • Michelosen • Bach • Kiesling • Parker • Nixon • Austin • Noll • Cowher • Tomlin Division Championships (18) 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1983, 1984, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007 Super Bowl Appearances (6) IX • X • XIII • XIV • XXX • XL League Championships (5) 1974 • 1975 • 1978 • 1979 • 2005 Hall of Fame Members Players - Blount • Bradshaw • Dudley • Greene • Ham • Harris • Johnson • Lambert • Layne • Stallworth • Stautner • Swann • Webster Coaches and Administration - Bell • Kiesling • Noll • Art Rooney • Dan Rooney Seasons 1933 • 1934 • 1935 • 1936 • 1937 • 1938 • 1939 • 1940 • 1941 • 1942 • 1943 • 1944 • 1945 • 1946 • 1947 • 1948 • 1949 • 1950 • 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1954 • 1955 • 1956 • 1957 • 1958 • 1959 • 1960 • 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 • 1970 • 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 Current League Affiliations League: National Football League • Conference: American Football Conference • Division: North Division

1975 NFL season v • d • e
AFC	East	Central	West	NFC	East	Central	West
	Baltimore	Cincinnati	Denver		Dallas	Chicago	Atlanta
	Buffalo	Cleveland	Kansas City		NY Giants	Detroit	Los Angeles
	Miami	Houston	Oakland		Philadelphia	Green Bay	New Orleans
	New England	Pittsburgh	San Diego		St. Louis	Minnesota	San Francisco
	NY Jets				Washington
1975 NFL Draft • NFL Playoffs • Pro Bowl • Super Bowl X

Preceded by Pittsburgh Steelers 1974

Super Bowl champion 1975

Succeeded by Oakland Raiders 1976