Pittsburgh Steelers

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For current information on this topic, see 2008 Pittsburgh Steelers season

Pittsburgh Steelers
Established 1933 Play in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Helmet Logo
League/Conference affiliations
National Football League (1933–present) Eastern Division (1933–1943; 1945–1949) Western Division (1944) American Conference (1950–1952) Eastern Conference (1953–1969) Century Division (1967–1969) American Football Conference (1970–present) AFC Central (1970–2001) AFC North (2002–present)
Current uniform
Team colors	Black and Gold
Mascot	Steely McBeam
Personnel
Owner	Dan Rooney
General Manager	Kevin Colbert
Head Coach	Mike Tomlin
Team history
Pittsburgh Pirates (1933–1939) Pittsburgh Steelers (1940–1942) Philadelphia-Pittsburgh "Steagles" (1943) Card-Pitt (1944) Pittsburgh Steelers (1945–present)
Championships
League Championships (5) Super Bowl Championships (5) 1974 (IX), 1975 (X), 1978 (XIII), 1979 (XIV), 2005 (XL)
Conference Championships (6) AFC: 1974, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1995, 2005
Division Championships (18) AFC Central: 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1983, 1984, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001 AFC North: 2002, 2004, 2007
Home fields
Forbes Field (1933–1963) Pitt Stadium (1964–1969) Three Rivers Stadium (1970–2000) Heinz Field (2001–present)

Heinz Field. Current Home of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). Founded in 1933, the Steelers are the oldest and most championed franchise in the AFC. The team has appeared in six Super Bowls and is one of three teams to have won the Super Bowl five times. They have appeared in 13 Conference Championship Games and have hosted more conference championship games than any other NFL franchise. From 1974 to 1979 the franchise became the first NFL franchise to win four Super Bowl titles in six seasons, a feat which is yet to be matched. The 2005 team is the only sixth-seeded team in NFL history to advance to a conference championship game; they went on to win the game, followed by their latest Super Bowl victory on February 5, 2006.

The Steelers have had seventeen players and coaches inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the fourth most of any franchise in the NFL.^[1] The fifth-oldest franchise in the NFL, ther Steelers were founded as the Pittsburgh Pirates on July 8, 1933, by Art Rooney.^[2] The ownership of the Steelers has remained within the Rooney family since its founding. The current owner is Art's son, Dan Rooney, who has given much control of the franchise to his son Art Rooney II.

The Steelers currently play their home games in Heinz Field on Pittsburgh's Northside. Built in 2001, the stadium replaced Three Rivers Stadium which hosted the Steelers for 31 seasons.

[edit] Franchise history

For more details on this topic, see History of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Pittsburgh Steelers first took to the field as the Pittsburgh Pirates on September 20, 1933, losing 23-2 to the New York Giants.^[3] Through the 1930s, the Pirates never finished higher than second place in their division, or with a record better than 0.500 (1936).^[4] Pittsburgh did make history in 1938 by signing Byron White, a future justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, to what was at the time the biggest contract in NFL history,^[5] but he played only one year with the Pirates before signing with the Detroit Lions.^[6]

During World War II, the Steelers experienced player shortages. They twice merged with other NFL franchises to field a team. During the Steagles|1943 season, they merged with the Philadelphia Eagles forming the "Phil-Pitt Eagles" and were known as the "Steagles." This team went 5-4-1. In 1944 they merged with the Chicago Cardinals and were known as Card-Pitt.^[7] This team finished 0-10, marking the only winless team in franchise history.^[8]

The Steelers made the playoffs for the first time in 1947, tying for first place in the division at 8-4 with the Philadelphia Eagles. This forced a tie-breaking playoff game at Forbes Field, which the Steelers lost 21-0.^[9] That would be Pittsburgh's only playoff game for 25 years, though the Steelers did qualify for a "Playoff Bowl" in 1963 as the second best team in their conference, though not considered an official playoff.^[10]

In 1970, with the assimilation of the American Football League into the National Football League, the Pittsburgh Steelers were one of three old-guard NFL teams to switch to the newly-formed American Conference (the others being the Cleveland Browns and the Baltimore Colts). This restructuring was necessary to equalize the number of teams in each of the two conferences following the AFL-NFL merger.

The Steelers' history of bad luck changed with the hiring of coach Chuck Noll for the 1969 season. Noll's most remarkable talent was in his draft selections, taking Hall of Famers "Mean" Joe Greene in 1969, Terry Bradshaw and Mel Blount in 1970, Jack Ham in 1971, Franco Harris in 1972,^[11] and finally, in 1974, pulled off the incredible feat of selecting four Hall of Famers in one draft year, Mike Webster, Lynn Swann, John Stallworth, and Jack Lambert.^[12] The Pittsburgh Steelers' 1974 draft has gone down in NFL history as the best ever, considering no other team has ever drafted four future Hall of Famers in one year. The players drafted in the early '70s formed the base of one of the greatest dynasties in NFL history, making the playoffs in eight seasons and becoming the only team in NFL history to win four Super Bowls in six years, as well as the first to win more than two.

The Steelers suffered a rash of injuries in the 1980 season and missed the playoffs with a 9-7 record. The 1981 season was no better, with an 8-8 showing. The team was then hit with the retirements of all their key players from the Super Bowl years. Mean Joe Greene retired after the 1981 season, Lynn Swann and Jack Ham after 1982's playoff berth, Terry Bradshaw and Mel Blount after 1983's divisional championship, and Jack Lambert after 1984's AFC Championship Game appearance.

After those retirements, the franchise skidded to its first losing seasons since 1971. Though still competitive, the Steelers would not finish above 0.500 in 1985, 1986, and 1988. In 1987, the year of the players' strike, the Steelers finished with a record of 8-7, but missed the playoffs. In 1989, they would reach the second round of the playoffs on the strength of Merrill Hoge and Rod Woodson before narrowly missing the playoffs in each of the next two seasons.

In 1992, Chuck Noll retired and was succeeded by Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Bill Cowher, a native of the Pittsburgh suburb of Crafton.

Cowher led the Steelers to the playoffs in each of his first six seasons, a feat that had been accomplished only by legendary coach Paul Brown of the Cleveland Browns. Overall, Cowher led the Steelers to the playoffs in 10 of his 15 seasons, including an appearance in Super Bowl XXX on the strength of the "Blitzburgh" defense at the end of the 1995 season. However, the Steelers lost to the Dallas Cowboys. Cowher produced the franchise's record-tying fifth Super Bowl win in Super Bowl XL over the National Football Conference champion Seattle Seahawks ten years later. With that victory, the Steelers became the third team to win five Super Bowls, and the first sixth-seeded playoff team to reach and win the Super Bowl since the NFL expanded to a 12-team post-season tournament in 1990.

Cowher resigned from coaching the Steelers on January 5, 2007, citing a need to spend more time with his family. He did not use the term 'retire', leaving open a possible return to the NFL as coach of another team. A three-man committee consisting of Art Rooney II, Dan Rooney, and Kevin Colbert was set-up to conduct interviews for the head coaching vacancy.^[13] The candidates interviewed included: offensive coordinator Ken Whisenhunt, offensive line coach Russ Grimm, former offensive coordinator Chan Gailey, Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin, and Chicago Bears defensive coordinator Ron Rivera. On January 22, 2007, Mike Tomlin was announced as Cowher's successor as head coach. Tomlin is the first African-American to be named head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers in its 74-year history.

Since the NFL merger in 1970, the Pittsburgh Steelers have compiled an overall record of 334-217-2 , reached the playoffs 22 times, won their division 17 times, played in 13 AFC championship games, and won five of six Super Bowls.

[edit] Season-by-season records

Main article: Pittsburgh Steelers seasons

Through the 2007 season, the Steelers have a 541-517-21 all-time record, including playoffs. In recent seasons the Steelers have generally performed well, qualifying for the playoffs five times and winning the Super Bowl once in the past seven seasons.

[edit] Logo and uniforms

Logo (1963-Present)

Stylized Logo

The Steelers have used black and gold as their colors since the club's inception, excluding the 1934 season when they were still the Pirates and they wore uniforms with horizontal black and white stripes from head to toe, and the 1943 season when they merged with the Philadelphia Eagles and formed the "Steagles"; the team's colors at that time were green and white as a result of wearing Eagles uniforms. Originally, the team wore solid gold-colored helmets and black jerseys. Unique to Pittsburgh, the Steelers' black and gold colors are shared by all major professional teams in the city, including the Pittsburgh Pirates in baseball and the Pittsburgh Penguins in hockey. These also are the colors of the city's official flag.

The Steelers logo was introduced in 1962 and is based on the "Steelmark," originally designed by Pittsburgh's U.S. Steel and now owned by the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI). In an ironic twist, it was Cleveland-based Republic Steel that suggested the Steelers adopt the industry logo. It consists of the word "Steelers" surrounded by three astroids (hypocycloids of four cusps). The original meanings behind the astroids were, "Steel lightens your work, brightens your leisure, and widens your world." Later, the colors came to represent the ingredients used in the steel-making process: yellow for coal, orange for iron ore, and blue for scrap steel.^[14] While the formal Steelmark logo contains only the word "Steel," the team was given permission to add "ers" in 1963 after a petition against AISI.

The Steelers are the only NFL team that puts its logo on only one side of the helmet (the right side). Longtime field and equipment manager Jack Hart was instructed to do this by Art Rooney as a test to see how the logo appeared on the gold helmets; however, its popularity led the team to leave it that way permanently.^[15] A year after introducing the logo, they switched to black helmets to make it stand out more.

Another distinctive feature of the helmets is that a player's number appears on both the front and back (the Steelers are one of only two teams in the NFL to this). The numbers traditionally do not appear on the helmet fronts during the exhibition season.

The Steelers have made only a few changes to their jerseys over the years. The team added Northwestern-style stripes to the sleeves in 1936, and with the team finishing 0.500 for the first time in team history that season (at 6-6), the stripes have remained on the uniforms since, with three exceptions:

• The aforementioned "Steagles" season didn't feature the stripes because the team wore the Eagles uniforms as a cost-saving measure. The Eagles' jerseys at the time were green with white shoulders and no stripes.
• As part of experimentation with the uniforms in the 1960s, the Steelers wore two types of white jerseys from 1962 to 1966, one of which featured a gold diamond on the sleeves in place of the stripes, with the "TV numbers" situated on the diamonds. The other jersey featured gold sleeves and a black version of the stripes.

The Steelers' "Batman"-style uniforms the team experimented with in 1967.

• In 1967, the team experimented with the now-infamous "Batman"-themed uniforms, named as such because they were similar to the Batman outfits Adam West wore on the popular TV series. The jersey had no stripes on either the black or white jerseys and had a gold triangle-like diamond covering the shoulders.

After the "Batman" uniforms failed with the fans (the team also finished 4-9-1, last in the short-lived NFL Century Division), the current uniform designs were introduced in 1968. The design was a modernized version of the pre-1967 home design and consists of gold pants and either black jerseys or white jerseys, except for the 1970 and 1971 seasons when the Steelers wore white pants with their white jerseys. The helmet is solid black with a gold central stripe and small white player numbers on the forehead. Last names were added to the jerseys in 1970, as part of a new NFL mandate resulting from the NFL-AFL merger (the AFL teams had last names on the back of their jerseys). In 1997, the team switched to rounded numbers on the jersey to match the number font (Futura Condensed) on the helmets, and a Steelers logo was added to the left side of the jersey.

The Steelers are one of a dwindling number of NFL franchises that strictly wears its team color jerseys at home, always opting for black. The Steelers last wore white at home on a regular basis in 1969, Chuck Noll's first season as coach and the last year the team played in Pitt Stadium. The team has done this for much of its history and has continued to do so as more NFL teams wear white jerseys in at least one home game. They are one of 13 teams since 1999 that have not worn white at home (14 if you count the New York Giants, who wore white in their 2005 "away" game against the New Orleans Saints at Giants Stadium as well as their numerous "away" games against the New York Jets since 1984.), and are the only ones in the AFC North to practice this. The Cleveland Browns have traditionally had on again/off again periods of wearing white at home, while the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals, like some other NFL teams, wear white in their home opener before wearing their darker jerseys in their remaining home games.

Because of the team's unofficial policy of always wearing their black jerseys in home games, the team gained some notoriety when, as the designated "home" team for Super Bowl XL, the team elected to wear their white jerseys, becoming just the third NFL team to elect to wear white as the "home" team in the Super Bowl. But while the other two teams that have elected to wear white as the "home" team in the Super Bowl (Dallas and Washington) traditionally wear white at home, a variety of reasons were rumored as to why the Steelers elected to wear white in Super Bowl XL. Reasons included the fact that the team wore white in all three playoff victories that year (all on the road) to former head coach Bill Cowher's comments that since it wasn't at Heinz Field, it was a road game (a statement contradicted by the fact that ten years earlier in Super Bowl XXX, Cowher's squad was the "home team" and chose to wear their black jerseys away from Three Rivers Stadium, where they had played both playoff games). However, it should be noted though that the game took place in Detroit, which is only a five hour drive from Pittsburgh and with the league preferring to have the Super Bowl in subtropical or Mediterranean climates or in domed/retractable roof stadiums due to the winter weather, is likely the closest the Steelers would have to a home game in a Super Bowl in the foreseeable future. (Not surprisingly, there were also an overwhelming number of Steelers fans at the game compared to the number of supporters of their opponent, the Seattle Seahawks. One ESPN.com columnist suggested that Steelers fans outnumbered Seahawks fans by a ratio of 25 to 1.^[16]) Also, the Steelers were the designated "home" team in Super Bowl XIV and elected to wear black (also a season in which they played both their playoff games at home).

Steely McBeam signing autographs for fans at Steelers training camp on August 2, 2007

At a press conference on April 27, 2007, it was announced that the Steelers would wear a throwback uniform for two home games during the 2007 season, as part of the celebration of the Steelers' 75th Season. They were worn for the Steelers' home opener against the Buffalo Bills on September 16 and again during the Monday Night Football game on November 5 against the Baltimore Ravens. Both games resulted in victories. The jersey is black with the numbers, names and stripes all in gold and it also contains a 75th Season logo on the right side of the upper chest part of the jersey. The jersey is considered to be from the 1960 season. The pants are white with a single gold stripe running down the length of the outside of each leg, surrounded by thinner black stripes on either side of the gold stripe. The helmets are gold with the Steelers logo on the right side and a single black stripe running down the center from front to back. The helmet was worn during the 1962 season, which was the first year that the present Steelers logo began to appear on their helmets. The only two differences are that the logo on the original helmet read 'Steel', whereas Steelers appears on the helmet that the team will wear for the two games in 2007 and that the face mask on this version of the helmet is black, whereas the original face mask color on the gold helmet was gray.

[edit] Mascot

Prior to the 2007 season, the Steelers introduced Steely McBeam as their official mascot.^[17] As part of the 75th anniversary celebrations of the team, his name was selected from a pool of 70,000 suggestions submitted by fans of the team.^[17] Diane Roles of Middlesex, Pennsylvania, submitted the winning name which was "meant to represent steel for Pittsburgh's industrial heritage, "Mc" for the Rooney family's Irish roots, and Beam for the steel beams produced in Pittsburgh. And also for Jim Beam, her husband's favorite alcoholic beverage."^[18] Steely McBeam is visible at all home games and participates in the team's charitable programs and other club-sponsored events.^[17]

The new mascot has not been embraced by Steelers fans. In poll of over 33,000 voters, McBeam received approval from less than 10%.^[19] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette named McBeam as one of the city's "dishonorable mentions" for 2007.^[19] Some have created Anti-Steely apparel, dubbing the mascot "Steely McStupid."^[20]

[edit] Rivals

The Pittsburgh Steelers have three primary rivals, all within their division: (Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, and Cincinnati Bengals). They also have rivalries with other teams that arose from post-season battles in the past, most notably the New England Patriots, Oakland Raiders, and Dallas Cowboys.

They also have an intrastate rivalry with the Philadelphia Eagles, but the number of interconference games is limited so the teams do not encounter each other with any regularity. The two teams do, however, meet every year in preseason games, and are usually nationally televised on ESPN.

[edit] Divisional rivals

• The Cleveland Browns and the Steelers have been divisional rivals since the two cities' teams began playing against each other in 1950. The all-time series between the two cities was recently taken over by the Steelers for the first time ever (57-55); partly due to holding an overwhelming 16-3 record against the post-1999 expansion Cleveland Browns franchise, including winning the last nine straight. Additionally, the Browns lost 16 straight years in Pittsburgh from 1970–1985 and posted an abysmal 5-24 record at Three Rivers Stadium overall. Former Steelers head coach Bill Cowher coached the Browns special teams and secondary before being hired by Pittsburgh after his brief tenure with Kansas City, which has only served to intensify this rivalry. Since Cleveland rejoined the league in 1999 (their first game back being a 43-0 drubbing at the hands of the Steelers in the first game played at Cleveland Browns Stadium), the rivalry between the teams, while still heated, has taken a backseat to the Steelers/Ravens rivalry. The original Browns moved to Baltimore in 1996.
• The Baltimore Ravens and the Steelers have had several memorable match-ups and have a bitter divisional rivalry. Both teams handed the other their first losses at their current home fields. The Steelers won the inaugural game played at Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium in 1998, 20-13, and three years later the Ravens handed the Steelers their first-ever loss at Heinz Field, 13-10. Later that season (2001) Pittsburgh won a divisional playoff game 27-10 against Baltimore, which had appeared in its first Super Bowl the previous season. During their world championship season in 2000, the Ravens defeated the Steelers in Pittsburgh, 16-0, in the season opener with the Steelers later exacting revenge, 9-6, in Baltimore (the Ravens' final loss of the season). The Steelers lead the series (begun in 1996), 15-9. The two teams complement each other by consistently fielding strong defenses in their division.
• The Cincinnati Bengals rivalry with Pittsburgh dates from the 1970 season, when the NFL-AFL merger was completed. One of the most memorable games was the 2005 AFC Wildcard playoff game, in which the Steelers, en route to a Super Bowl title, won a 31-17 come-from-behind victory after Bengals QB Carson Palmer was forced to leave the game with a knee injury. The Steelers and Bengals finished 2005 and 2006 with identical records (11-5 and 8-8 respectively), splitting both regular-season series, the Bengals winning the tiebreaker both years due to having a superior division record. The Steelers also are responsible for ending the Bengals' season in Cincinnati two years in a row, eliminating them from the playoffs in 2005 and taking them out of contention in 2006.

[edit] Historic rivals

• The rivalry between the Steelers and the New England Patriots emerged when the "cinderella" Patriots upset the Steelers in the 2001 AFC Championship game at Heinz Field. Pittsburgh did not exact revenge until ending the Patriots record-setting 21-game winning streak in week #6 of the 2004 NFL season. Later that season, the Steelers lost to the eventual champion Patriots in the AFC Championship game after a 15-1 season. The two also had a brief rivalry in the mid 1990s when the Steelers and Patriots split playoff meetings in 1996 and 1997, in which the Patriots had two young stars with Pittsburgh-area roots in Ty Law and Curtis Martin. Martin played his last game as a Patriot against the Steelers in the second playoff game before signing with the rival New York Jets during the offseason, where he became more well known. The Patriots have won 5 of the last 6 meetings, including both AFC Championship match-ups. The teams' next meeting will be at New England on November 30, 2008.

• The rivalry between the Steelers and the Oakland Raiders was the most heated of the 1970s. The Steelers' first playoff win was a 13-7 victory over the Raiders by way of Franco Harris's Immaculate Reception on December 23, 1972. Pittsburgh was knocked out of the playoffs the following year by the Raiders, but fired back with two straight AFC Championships in 1974 and 1975 over Oakland. Oakland responded with a victory over Pittsburgh in the 1976 AFC Championship (the third consecutive AFC title game between the two teams), but not before Chuck Noll has referred to Geroge Atkinson's hit in Lynn Swann during a regular-season matchup as part of the NFL's "criminal element". Atkinson and the Raiders later filed a defamation of character lawsuit against Noll, but lost. While the rivalry has dissipated over the years (mostly due to Oakland's decline in recent seasons), the teams have had notable games against each other including an upset Raider victory in week #8 of the 2006 NFL season (20-13), which helped cost the Steelers a playoff berth. The teams' next meeting will be at Pittsburgh in 2009.

• The rivalry between the Steelers and the Dallas Cowboys started with the Cowboys' first game as a franchise in 1960 (against the Steelers) at the Cotton Bowl with the Steelers coming away with a 35-28 victory. These teams hold a record for the most times (three) that two teams have met in a Super Bowl. The first two times the Steelers and Cowboys met came with Pittsburgh victories in Super Bowl X and Super Bowl XIII to become the Team of the '70s (in fact, between the Cowboys and Steelers, Super Bowl XIII had the highest number of future hall of famers participating). The teams featured an all-star matchup at quarterback between the Steelers' Terry Bradshaw and the Cowboys' Roger Staubach, both of whom are in the Hall of Fame. In 1977, Staubach and the Cowboys went on to win Super Bowl XII, their last loss of that season being inflicted by Bradshaw and the Steelers, 28-13 at Three Rivers Stadium two months before. In 1979, nine months after Super Bowl XIII, the two teams met again at Three Rivers, the Steelers winning 14-3 in the last meeting ever between Bradshaw and Staubach. The Steelers won two of three meetings during the 1980s, with the Cowboys winning all four meetings during the 1990s, including the teams' record third Super Bowl meeting in 1996, as this time the heavily-favored Cowboys beat the Steelers 27-17. Dallas cornerback Larry Brown intercepted Pittsburgh quarterback Neil O'Donnell twice and was named the game's MVP. The teams' first meeting of the 21st century went to the Steelers in 2004. Their next meeting will be at Pittsburgh on December 7, 2008, which has already gotten some hype after Ben Roethlisberger mentioned that he plans on sending Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson to Mexico after the game.^[21] This is in reference to Romo and Simpson going to Mexico shortly before the Cowboys loss to the eventual Super Bowl Champion New York Giants in the playoffs.

[edit] Team statistics and records

Further information: Pittsburgh Steelers statistics

[edit] Players of note

[edit] Current roster

[edit] Pro Football Hall of Famers

The following list was taken from the Pro Football Hall of Fame's official website:^[22]

Inductees

Award recipients

• Myron Cope, Announcer (1970–2005), awarded the 2005 Pro Football Hall of Fame's Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award

[edit] Retired numbers

• 70 Ernie Stautner^[45]

[edit] "Unofficially" retired numbers

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The Steelers no longer officially retire uniform numbers; however, the following numbers are out of circulation and understood to be unofficially retired:

• 1 Gary Anderson (1982-1994) - Worn by Anthony Wright in 1999, but otherwise hasn't been reissued, likely due to Anderson since eclipsing George Blanda on the all-time scoring list.
• 12 Terry Bradshaw (1970–1983)
• 31 Donnie Shell (1974-1987) - Issued once since, to former Steelers safety Mike Logan (2001-2006), a native of nearby McKeesport, Pennsylvania.
• 32 Franco Harris (1972–1983)
• 36 Jerome Bettis (1996–2005)
• 47 Mel Blount (1970–1983) - Last issued to Linebacker Ronald Stanley after he was signed to the active roster on November 11, 2006.
• 52 Mike Webster (1974–1988)
• 58 Jack Lambert (1974–1984)
• 59 Jack Ham (1971-1982)- Used once in 1984 by Todd Seabaugh, who played one season with the team. According to legend, the equipment manager—who assigns jersey numbers to new players—later stripped Seabaugh of the number because he "wasn't Jack Ham". The number has not been used since.
• 63 Dermontti Dawson (1988–2000)
• 75 "Mean" Joe Greene (1969–1981)
• 82 John Stallworth (1974-1987) - Was only recently removed from circulation after Antwaan Randle El left for the Washington Redskins in free agency after the Steelers won Super Bowl XL, and the NFL allowing wide receivers to wear 10-19 in addition to 80's numbers two years before gave the team the luxury to remove 82 from circulation in honor of Stallworth.

[edit] Super Bowl MVPs

The following Steelers players have been named Super Bowl MVP:

• Super Bowl IX - Franco Harris
• Super Bowl X - Lynn Swann
• Super Bowl XIII - Terry Bradshaw
• Super Bowl XIV - Terry Bradshaw
• Super Bowl XL - Hines Ward

[edit] Other notable former players

[edit] All-time team

As determined by a fan vote in 2007:^[46]

[edit] Coaches

Main article: List of Pittsburgh Steelers head coaches

The Steelers have had sixteen coaches through their history. Their first coach was Forrest Douds, who coached them to a 3-6-2 record in 1933. Chuck Noll had the longest term as head coach with the Steelers, he one of only four coaches to coach a single NFL team for 23 years.^[2] Hired prior to the 2007 season, the Steelers current coach is Mike Tomlin.^[47]

[edit] Current staff

[edit] Radio and television

As of 2006, the Steelers' flagship stations were WDVE 102.5FM and WBGG 970AM. Both stations are owned by Clear Channel Communications. Games are also available on 51 radio stations in Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, and West Virginia.^[48] The announcers are Bill Hillgrove and Tunch Ilkin. Craig Wolfley is the sideline reporter. Myron Cope, the longtime color analyst who popularized the "Terrible Towel," retired after the 2004 season, and passed away in 2008.

Pre-season games not shown on one of the national broadcasters are seen on KDKA, channel 2; WPCW, channel 19; and FSN Pittsburgh. Coach Mike Tomlin's weekly press conference is shown live on FSN.

National NFL Network broadcasts are shown locally on KDKA, while national ESPN broadcasts are shown locally on WTAE, channel 4.

[edit] Figures with broadcasting resumés

The Steelers franchise has a rich history of producing well-known sportscasters over the years: the most famous of which is Myron Cope, who served as a Steelers radio color commentator for 35 seasons (1970-2004).

Additionally, several former players for the Pittsburgh Steelers picked up the broadcast microphone:

• Lynn Swann (wide receiver, 1974-1982) - Starting in 1978 was a sideline reporter for ABC Sports. Over the 2005 and 2006 NFL seasons, he had taken a leave of absence to unsuccessfully pursue the governor's office of Pennsylvania. Swann has also had several Hollywood roles, making cameos in 1998's The Waterboy, 1993's The Program and 1991's The Last Boy Scout. His TV cameos include Saturday Night Live and The Drew Carey Show.
• Merrill Hoge (running back, 1987-1993) - Has hosted sports shows on ESPN and ESPN2 since 1996 most notably EA Sports NFL Match Up, Football Friday and NFL Tonight. He has also had hosting duties on ABC's Great Outdoors Games. He also served as an analyst for the Steelers radio network alongside Bill Hillgrove and the late Myron Cope.
• Mark Malone (quarterback, 1980-1987) - Began his career as a sports reporter for Pittsburgh's WPXI-TV from 1991–1994, from 1994 to 2004 he hosted nationally-televised sports shows for ESPN, including NFL 2Night, Edge NFL Matchup and the X-Games. From 2004-2008 he was director of sports broadcasting at CBS2 Chicago.
• Jerome Bettis (running back, 1996-2005) - Co-host of NBC Sunday Night Football's Football Night in America pre-game with Bob Costas 2006–Present, also was host of the Pittsburgh broadcast The Jerome Bettis Show 1998–2005 on KDKA-TV.
• Bill Cowher (head coach, 1992-2006) - Co-host of CBS Sports NFL Today on CBS as a studio analyst, joining Dan Marino, Shannon Sharpe, and Boomer Esiason. Cowher had a cameo in 1998's The Waterboy, and in 2007 Cowher appeared in the ABC reality television series Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race, featuring a dozen celebrities in a stock car racing competition. Cowher matched up against Gabrielle Reece and William Shatner.
• Terry Bradshaw (quarterback, 1970-1983) - Started as a Guest commentator for CBS NFL Playoff broadcasts from 1980–1982, after retirement he joined Verne Lundquist at CBS full-time as a game anaylst on what would become one of the top rated sports broadcasts. In 1990 he went from the broadcast booth to the pre-game studio shows anchoring the NFL Today pre-game shows on CBS and later on FOX NFL Sunday. He has in recent years started to host regular features in addition to the show, "Ten yards with TB" and the "Terry Awards". In addition to broadcasting Bradshaw has had appearances in several major motion pictures (most notably Smokey and the Bandit II, Black Sunday, and Failure to Launch) as well as spokesman for Radio Shack and SaniKing among others in commercials. He also has made many guest appearances on sitcoms from Married with Children to Evening Shade and Wee Willie Winkie.
• Tunch Ilkin (offensive tackle, 1980-1992) - current Steelers radio color commentator; Pittsburgh CW Network In the Locker Room Host 2006–Present.
• Craig Wolfley (offensive lineman, 1980-1989) - current Steelers radio sideline reporter; Pittsburgh CW Network In the Locker Room Host 2006–Present.

[edit] Notable moments

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The following is a selected list of memorable Steelers games.

November 22, 1959 at Cleveland Browns

Behind 14-20 with a minute and a half left and at their own 28 yard line, the Steelers Bobby Layne drove 60 yards behind the blocking of injured Tom Barnett who refused to leave the field. Layne threw a 12 yard pass with seconds left for the go-ahead score. Of Barnett's superhuman effort in protecting the Steelers runners and pass plays in the face of unbearable pain Layne said "He's all man, you can take that from me, that was a show, what he did to [the Browns Defense]". To add insult to a shocked Cleveland crowd, when the Browns took over after the Steelers score, dependable Lou Groza missed a chip shot field goal as the clock ran out.

December 15, 1963, at New York Giants

For the second year in a row, Coach Buddy Parker led the once-hapless Steelers to a winning season only to fall short of the playoffs. The quest for a divisional title came down to the final game against the Giants at Yankee Stadium. Although Pittsburgh fielded six Pro-Bowlers and a future hall of famer they fell short of the championship when the Giants won 33-17.

October 10, 1964, Cleveland Browns, Municipal Stadium

On the way towards a 5-9 season, the Steelers traveled to Cleveland while the Browns were on the road to their 1964 Championship Game appearance. John Henry Johnson racked up a jaw-dropping 200 yards on the ground and three touchdowns against the league's 5th best defense. The Steelers would go on to a 23-7 victory over the eventual NFL Champions while holding NFL legend Jim Brown to just a scoreless 59 total yards.

October 3, 1970, Cleveland Browns, Municipal Stadium

Last of the "Saturday Night Games" during the Steelers-Browns rivalry, a tradition which brought mystique and urban legends to the contest—even more so from what happened in the stands than was happening on in the field. In true Browns/Steelers tradition the game was a defensive battle of smashmouth football with a 15-7 loss being handed to the upstart Steelers.

November 19, 1972, at Cleveland Browns

A game that was as dramatic as it was decisive. The Browns' Don Cockroft missed a 26 yard field goal with only minutes left only to have the same exact field position with :08 left on the game clock a half dozen plays later. His FG gave Cleveland the narrow win and tied the two teams atop the division with four games to go, but the Steelers would pummel their rivals in Pittsburgh two weeks later to take the Division crown as Cleveland made the playoffs as the lone wild-card.

December 23, 1972, vs. Oakland Raiders, AFC Divisional Playoff

The "Immaculate Reception" took place in what would be the Steelers' first ever post-season victory. The Steelers were down by one as time was expiring and Terry Bradshaw, desperate to throw, finally finds Frenchy Fuqua, but the pass rebounded off of either Fuqua or the Raider defending him, Jack Tatum. The ball came to rest into the hands of Franco Harris, who had wandered out beyond the line of scrimmage after seeing no Raider to block. The fans at Three Rivers Stadium exploded as Harris ran the catch in for the game winning touchdown. The officials were as bewildered as the Raiders; not one blew a whistle on what Raider coach John Madden insists was a dead ball since rules at the time prevented two offensive players from touching a live ball.^[49] The play is arguably the first official use of replay in the NFL as the officials call upstairs to use network feeds to see if the ball hit the ground or was batted by Fuqua to set up Harris' catch and touchdown.^[50] No angle catches the turf at the moment of the catch, nor how the ball came to Harris. Perhaps the most ironic part of the "greatest play ever" and the moment of Pittsburgh's first post-season victory was who missed it. The game was blacked out in Pittsburgh, so no one in the metro area realized what had happened until hours after. The patriarch of the team, Art Rooney was on an elevator going down to comfort his Steelers after what he thought was a loss. Legendary announcer Myron Cope was also in an elevator on the way down for post-game interviews. Even on the field, Bradshaw was regaining his bearings after being drilled by Oakland defenders and was looking skyward with his back on the turf.

November 25, 1973, at Cleveland Browns

Browns rookie Greg Pruitt kept Cleveland on the heels of the division-leading Steelers with a 42 yard pass early in the game, in which Pruitt eluded all eleven Steeler defenders, and a last minute 19 yard TD run that gave the Browns a 21-16 win. After getting swept up in the emotions of the dramatic comeback, the rookie Pruitt mistakenly bursts into the Steelers locker room. By the time Pruitt calmed down and remembered which door he needed to go through to get to his locker room, the Cleveland press had left.

December 3, 1973 at Miami Dolphins, Monday Night Football

A blooper game if ever there was one. Joe Gilliam started at quarterback, filling in for the injured Bradshaw, and starts 0 for 7 with three interceptions (including one that went for a Miami touchdown). His errors forced coach Chuck Noll to pull Gilliam and put in the hobbling Bradshaw. Bradshaw continued the problematic play when his first pass is picked off by the Miami defense and is returned for yet another touchdown. With the score 27-0 Miami, the Steelers attempt to make a comeback. Miami gets burned on a fake punt for a Pittsburgh touchdown, a 21 yard run by Franco Harris for another Pittsburgh score, two Larry Csonka fumbles, one of which sets up a Bradshaw touchdown pass on the very next play, and finally, on fourth down from their own five yard line, coach Don Shula called for Bob Griese to take an intentional safety, even confusing the famed MNF announcers. With all the sloppy play on both sides Miami manages to hang on to a 30-26 win.

December 29, 1974 at Oakland Raiders, AFC Championship Game

In a game that resulted in the Steelers first Super Bowl appearance, the Steelers defense holds Oakland to only 29 yards on the ground and Jack Ham makes two key interceptions to end long Raider drives. Franco Harris and Rocky Bleier run over the Raider defenders for more than 200 combined yards in a 24-13 Pittsburgh win.

January 12, 1975. Minnesota Vikings, Super Bowl IX

Pittsburgh wins its first of its four Super Bowls in the 1970s and does it in record-setting fashion. The Steel Curtain defense holds the veteran Vikings to just 119 total offensive yards, still a Super Bowl record that stands 32 Championships later. The Steelers defense also robbed three interceptions and forced two Viking fumbles for a record five Super Bowl turnovers recovered. MVP Franco Harris set a Super Bowl rushing record that stood for almost a decade as Pittsburgh wins the world championship 16-6, missing the shutout on a blocked Steeler punt covered by Minnesota for a TD.

January 18, 1976, Dallas Cowboys, Super Bowl X

The Steelers repeated as Super Bowl Champions and again set multiple Super Bowl records, including yards receiving by MVP Lynn Swann. Swann's four immortal grabs for 161 yards set a yardage record that would stand for twelve Super Bowls. Among the receptions was a 64 yard completion for a touchdown in the fourth quarter that would be voted the best passing play in all of football history by NFL Films. The Steel Curtain defense would pick off Roger Staubach for three interceptions as Pittsburgh won by a score of 21-17 to win back-to-back championships. This game was the start of heated rivalry with the Dallas Cowboys (in what would become the most numerous pairing in Super Bowl history).

September 12, 1976 at Oakland Raiders, Season Opener

In what was becoming a heated rivalry for dominance of the AFC in the 1970s, this game brought tensions to a boiling point. Coming off of a freshly minted dynasty, the Steelers opened the quest for three championships in a row at the home of the eventual Super Bowl XI Champion Oakland Raiders. Pittsburgh was up late 28-14, but the Raiders came back with a vengeance. George Atkinson got in a cheap shot against Super Bowl MVP Swann with a blow to the head. Mel Blount retaliated later by driving Raider Cliff Branch head-first into the turf. Chuck Noll later fumed that Atkinson's hit on Swann was part of the "criminal element of the NFL" prompting the Raider to sue Noll in California court. Oakland won the slugfest 31-28.

October 10, 1976, at Cleveland Browns

A strange game in the Steelers/Browns rivalry. Fresh off a Super Bowl victory Terry Bradshaw is spiked head-first into the Cleveland turf by Joe "Turkey" Jones. Bradshaw left the game dazed after Jones' hit and so did Browns starter Brian Sipe after he was injured by the Steelers defense. In the end, it came down to the surprising play of back-up Browns quarterback Dr. David Mays, a dentist off the field, who caught the Steelers defense off-guard in a two point Pittsburgh loss.

November 20, 1977, Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys were 8-1 when they visited the Steelers with an injured Bradshaw (wrist). The Steelers showed run on every play and even though the Cowboys "Doomsday Defense" knew Harris would be coming on every down they were impotent against a vaunted Steeler offensive line. Harris ran all over the Cowboys for 179 yards, including a 61 yard touchdown run. Roger Staubach may have wished he were injured as he threw two critical interceptions as Pittsburgh went on to dominate Dallas at Three Rivers Stadium 28-13. It would be Dallas' last loss of the season as they would go on to win Super Bowl XII.

September 24, 1978, Cleveland Browns

One of the more heated games in the history of the Steelers/Browns rivalry, Lynn Swann survived a full speed shoulder to the neck shot by a Cleveland Browns back when he spreads out to catch a go-ahead score. The hit is so vicious that the TV announcer, Dick Enberg can be heard to scream in horror, but Swann held onto the ball. Pittsburgh's Steel Curtain defense was also quite vicious, earning four personal fouls in the game. In the final seconds of regulation, Jack Lambert exploded into the Cleveland backfield to push the Browns back out of field goal range and save the game for overtime 9-9. In overtime Bradshaw calls a "flea flicker" play, Bradshaw to Bleier to Swann to Bradshaw to Cunningham, that stuns Cleveland for a 15-9 loss.

November 25, 1979, Cleveland Browns

Arguably one of the greatest football games ever played. The Steelers were at the height of their four championships dynasty and the Browns were a year away from earning a Divisional crown of their own, as well as starting their AFC Championship game runs of the 1980s. The game lasted nearly 5 quarters and over four hours. The Steel Curtain Defense sacked Cleveland's Brian Sipe seven times, Harris had 151 yards rushing and 81 yards receiving for a total of 232 all-purpose yards. Pittsburgh battled back from 6-20, 13-27 and 20-30 deficits. Matt Bahr kicked a game-tying 21 yard field goal in the fourth quarter with :24 on the clock to send the contest into overtime. Bahr also was responsible for the 37 yard game winner with :09 left in overtime for a 33-30 Steelers victory (the only time in the game the Steelers were ahead). L.C. Greenwood said of the game: "It was one of the most physical games I've played in the 11 years I've played football...it was a hard fought game. We had to fight." A game that vaulted the Steelers/Browns rivalry into one of the greatest in all sports.

November 3, 1985, Cleveland Browns

Played in a driving rain storm, the game was a slugfest. In the end, the long-time Steelers kicker Gary Anderson booted a 25 yard field goal with :09 on the game clock to win it 10-9 for Pittsburgh. It is of note that the best kicker in Steelers history had this as his only last minute, game deciding field goal during his twelve years with Pittsburgh. The Steelers/Browns rivalry lore didn't end there with this contest as all teams in the division were tied for first after the game, with over half the season behind them. This was also the 16th straight loss the Steelers handed the Browns in Pittsburgh.

October 5, 1986, Cleveland Browns

The end of the "Three Rivers Jinx". With time running out, Quarterback Mark Malone fumbled and Cleveland safety Chris Rockins came up with the ball. This followed a controversial penalty against the Steelers, who were flagged for roughing Browns (and former Steelers) kicker Matt Bahr, that helped motivate Cleveland toward it's drought-breaking 27-24 triumph.

December 22, 1991, Cleveland Browns

The end of the Chuck Noll era. Richard Shelton intercepted Cleveland quarterback Bernie Kosar three times (the last being returned for a touchdown) as the Steelers triumphed 17-10. Four days later, Noll announced his retirement after 23 seasons as Steelers head coach and in 1993 was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

January 15, 1995, San Diego Chargers, AFC Championship Game

The Steelers blow a 10 point lead, succumbing on a failed fourth down pass late as San Diego pulled a stunning 17-13 upset for their first AFC title.

January 14, 1996, Indianapolis Colts, AFC Championship Game

In a back-and-forth struggle, the Steelers survive a scare from the up-and-coming Indianapolis Colts and quarterback Jim Harbaugh, whose last-second Hail Mary pass attempt fell just incomplete in a heart-stopping 20-16 Steeler win. It was the Steelers' fifth AFC title and first in 16 years.

November 26, 1998, at Detroit Lions

The most memorable moment during this 19-16 overtime loss on Thanksgiving to the Lions happened after regulation play. Jerome Bettis, playing for the Steelers in his hometown of Detroit, was asked to call the coin toss to open up overtime with the game tied 16-16. Bettis called hea..tails as the coin was in the air and the coin ended up landing on the tails side on the field. The referee, Phil Luckett, insisted that he heard Bettis state heads before the tails call. Audio clips of the call, broadcast later in the week on Pittsburgh station KDKA confirmed that Bettis had indeed said "head..tails" ^[51] The Steelers went into Thanksgiving with a record of 7-4, but the loss at Detroit apparently demoralized them, as they dropped all their remaining games to miss the playoffs at 7-9.

January 5, 2003 Cleveland Browns (AFC Wild Card Playoffs)

The 10-5-1 Steelers trailed the Cleveland Browns 24-7 midway through the third period when QB Tommy Maddox embarked upon one of the greatest combacks in NFL Playoff history. The Steelers would rally from a 33-21 deficit in the final quarter when Maddox directed two touchdown drives (with a two point conversion on the second) to complete the comback 36-33.

January 15, 2006, at Indianapolis Colts (AFC Divisional Playoffs)

See also The Immaculate Redemption.

The Wild Card Steelers were facing the Colts as heavy underdogs after defeating the AFC North Champion Cincinnati Bengals. Surprisingly, the Steelers managed to dictate the flow of most of the game and dominated throughout the first half. After an erroneous overturn of a key interception by Steelers Safety Troy Polamalu (the NFL later apologized for referee Pete Morelli's mistake^[52]), the Colts had another chance to come from behind. The Steelers continued to limit the Colts comeback and sacked Peyton Manning on the Colts' two yard line, turning the ball over on downs. It was 21-18 Steelers and appeared to be over with just two minutes left in the game. The Steelers could not fully run out the clock as the Colts had timeouts remaining, but they had the ball in the red zone with intent to run for a touchdown and seal the game. On the first snap, Jerome Bettis was handed the ball and headed for the endzone, but Gary Brackett got his helmet on the ball, which knocked the ball out for a fumble. Indianapolis Cornerback Nick Harper recovered the football and took off quickly down the field. With his speed it looked as if Indianapolis would score a touchdown to go ahead with little time left in the game, but the last Steeler defender, the quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger made a shoestring tackle to stop the run. Even though a heart-breaking score had been prevented, the Colts still had the ball. Peyton Manning drove thirty yards down the field and set up a 46 yard field goal attempt by kicker Mike Vanderjagt. Vanderjagt missed the field goal significantly wide right with 17 seconds left, this time finally sealing the Steelers upset victory. This series of plays would come to epitomize the entire 2005 Steelers' season, as they would eventually go on to win Super Bowl XL. ESPN analyst Chris Berman dubbed the Roethlisberger tackle "The Immaculate Redemption."

November 26, 2007, Miami Dolphins

In preparation for a Monday night game, and after a streak of 7 games in 11 days at Heinz Field, the playing surface had a layer of sod placed on top of it. This wouldn't have been a problem, but Monday night came with a driving thunderstorm, a rare occurrence for Pittsburgh in November. Because the sod did not have time to take, the drainage on the field was terrible, with puddles everywhere. When players would take a step, the turf would sink as much as four inches. These factors, combined with a rainstorm throughout the game, helped the game stay a scoreless tie until there were only 17 seconds left to play and led many to label this game, "The Battle of the Swamp". Pittsburgh beat the Dolphins by three points, 3-0, sinking the Dolphins to 0-12. It was the lowest scoring game in Monday Night Football history, and also the first game to go as far as it did without a score since 1943.

[edit] Fanbase

The Steelers have a tradition of having a large fanbase, which has spread from Pittsburgh . The team has sold out every home game since the 1972 season.^[53] In November 2007, the Steelers were ranked as the most popular sports franchise out of the 122 teams in the NHL, NBA, MLB and NFL, by a study from Turnkey Sports.^[54][55] Another study ranked Pittsburgh as having the highest percentage of female fans of their local football team. Ranking twice as high as the average city.^[56] An aspect of Steelers fandom, the Terrible Towel, is "arguably the best-known fan symbol of any major pro sports team".^[53] Invented by broadcaster Myron Cope in 1975,^[53] the towel's rights have since been given to the Allegheny Valley School in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania which cares for over 900 people with mental retardation and physical disabilities, including Cope's autistic son.^[57] Since 1996, proceeds from the Terrible Towel have helped raise more than $2.2 million for the school.^[57]

[edit] References

[edit] See also

• Dynasty (sports)
• Phil-Pitt Steagles
• Card-Pitt

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Pittsburgh Steelers

• Pittsburgh Steelers official website
• Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Steelers page
• Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Steelers page
• Sports E-Cyclopedia.com