1984 Pittsburgh Steelers season

1984 Pittsburgh Steelers season
Head coach Chuck Noll
General manager Dick Haley
Owner Art Rooney
Home field Three Rivers Stadium
Results
Record 9–7
Division place 1st AFC Central
Playoff finish Won Divisional Playoffs (Broncos) 24–17
Lost AFC Championship (Dolphins) 45–28
Pro Bowlers LB Robin Cole
WR Louis Lipps
LB Mike Merriweather
WR John Stallworth
C Mike Webster
AP All-Pros Louis Lipps (2nd team)
Team MVP John Stallworth
Team ROY Louis Lipps

The 1984 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 52nd season as a professional sports franchise and as a member of the National Football League.

Most of the stars from the 1970s had departed, but the Steelers showed signs of their past glory by amassing a 9-7 record to capture the AFC Central Title again. The highlight of the season was an October 14th win over the 49ers in San Francisco. It was the only loss the 49ers suffered all season. Also serving up highlights that season was WR Louis Lipps who won the Offensive Rookie of the Year. In the playoffs the Steelers stunned the Broncos 24-17 in Denver to earn a trip to the AFC Championship. However, the Steelers season would end with a 45-28 thrashing at the hands of the Dolphins in Miami.

Personnel

Staff

1984 Pittsburgh Steelers staff
Front office
  • Chairman of the Board – Arthur J. Rooney
  • President – Daniel M. Rooney
  • Vice President – John R. McGinley
  • Vice President – Arthur J. Rooney, Jr.
  • Controller – Dennis P. Thimons
  • Assistant Controller – Dan Ferens
  • Traveling Secretary – James A. Boston
  • Publicity Director – Joe Gordon
  • Assistant Publicity Director – John Evenson
  • Director of Ticket Sales – Geraldine Glenn
  • Assistant Director of Ticket Sales – Jim Ellenberger
  • Director of Player Personnel – Dick Haley
  • Assistant Director of Player Personnel – William Nunn, Jr.
  • Pro Talent Scout – Tom Modrak
  • Talent Scout – West Coast – Bob Schmitz
  • College Talent Scout – Joe Krupa

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

  • Offensive Coordinator – Tom Moore
  • Offensive Backfield – Dick Hoak
  • Offensive Line: Tackles/Tight Ends – Ron Blackledge
  • Offensive Line: Centers/Guards – Bill Meyers
 Defensive coaches


Strength and conditioning

  • Conditioning Coach – Jon Kolb
  • Assistant Conditioning Coach – Walt Evans
  • Physician, M.D. – Dr. David S. Huber
  • Physician, M.D. – Dr. Anthony P. Yates
  • Physician, Orthopedic – Dr. Paul Steele
  • Neurological Surgery Consultant – Dr. Joseph C. Maroon
  • Dentist – Dr. George P. Boucek
  • Ophthalmologist – Dr. Phillip Buzzelli
  • Trainer – Ralph Berlin
  • Assistant Trainer – Gary Stragar
  • Equipment Manager – Anthony Parisi
  • Field Manager – Rodgers Freyvogel
  • Film Director – Bob McCartney
  • Photographers – Harry Homa, Bill Amatucci

[1]

Roster

1984 Pittsburgh Steelers final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists
  • 68 Russ Graham T (IR)
  • 84 Chris Kolodziejski TE (IR)
  • 66 Kirk McJunkin G (IR)


Practice squad [1] [2] [3]


Rookies in italics
 57 Active, 3 Inactive, Practice squad

Preseason

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Game Site Kickoff (ET) TV Result Record
1 Sat. Aug. 4 at Cleveland Browns Cleveland Municipal Stadium 7:30 p.m. WPXI W 31–14 1–0
2 Sat. Aug. 11 Philadelphia Eagles Three Rivers Stadium 6:00 p.m. WPXI W 20–17 (OT) 2–0
3 Thu. Aug. 16 at Dallas Cowboys Texas Stadium 9:00 p.m. ABC W 20–10 3–0
4 Sat. Aug. 25 at New York Giants Giants Stadium 8:00 p.m. WPXI L 16–9 3–1

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Location Kickoff (ET) TV Result Record
1 Sun. Sep. 2 Kansas City Chiefs Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 37–27 0–1
2 Thu. Sep. 6 at New York Jets Giants Stadium 9:00 p.m. ABC W 23–17 1–1
3 Sun. Sep. 16 Los Angeles Rams Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. CBS W 24–14 2–1
4 Sun. Sep. 23 at Cleveland Browns Cleveland Municipal Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 20–10 2–2
5 Mon. Oct. 1 Cincinnati Bengals Three Rivers Stadium 9:00 p.m. ABC W 38–17 3–2
6 Sun. Oct. 7 Miami Dolphins Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 31–7 3–3
7 Sun. Oct. 14 at San Francisco 49ers Candlestick Park 4:00 p.m. NBC W 20–17 4–3
8 Sun. Oct. 21 at Indianapolis Colts Hoosier Dome 1:00 p.m. NBC L 17–16 4–4
9 Sun. Oct. 28 Atlanta Falcons Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. CBS W 35–10 5–4
10 Sun. Nov. 4 Houston Oilers Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 35–7 6–4
11 Sun. Nov. 11 at Cincinnati Bengals Riverfront Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 22–20 6–5
12 Mon. Nov. 19 at New Orleans Saints Louisiana Superdome 9:00 p.m. ABC L 27–24 6–6
13 Sun. Nov. 25 San Diego Chargers Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 52–24 7–6
14 Sun. Dec. 2 at Houston Oilers Astrodome 1:00 p.m. NBC L 23–20 (OT) 7–7
15 Sun. Dec. 9 Cleveland Browns Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 23–20 8–7
16 Sun. Dec. 16 at Los Angeles Raiders Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 4:00 p.m. NBC W 13–7 9–7

Game summaries

Week 1 (Sunday September 2, 1984): vs. Kansas City Chiefs

1 2 3 4 Total
Chiefs 7 17 13 0 37
Steelers 3 14 3 7 27

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Mark Malone and David Woodley combined for 419 passing yards, three touchdowns, and two interceptions, while the Chiefs won despite putting up just 264 yards of total offense.

Week 2 (Thursday September 6, 1984): at New York Jets

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 7 6 7 3 23
Jets 0 7 10 0 17

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Scoring Drives:

After coughing up four turnovers to the Chiefs, the Steelers picked off Pat Ryan three times and forced a fumble; they also bullied the Jets into 11 penalties for 115 yards.

Week 3 (Sunday September 16, 1984): vs. Los Angeles Rams

1 2 3 4 Total
Rams 7 0 7 0 14
Steelers 0 14 3 7 24

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

The Steelers limited Eric Dickerson to 49 rushing yards and forced two Rams fumbles.

Week 4 (Sunday September 23, 1984): at Cleveland Browns

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

at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

Scoring Drives:

Week 5 (Monday October 1, 1984): vs. Cincinnati Bengals

1 2 3 4 Total
Bengals 0 10 0 7 17
Steelers 0 14 10 14 38

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 6 (Sunday October 7, 1984): vs. Miami Dolphins

1 2 3 4 Total
Dolphins 0 21 3 7 31
Steelers 0 0 7 0 7

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 7 (Sunday October 14, 1984): at San Francisco 49ers

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 7 3 0 10 20
49ers 0 7 0 10 17

at Candlestick Park, San Francisco, California

This game was not on a lot NBC stations. Game 5 of the World Series was on at the same time. This would be the last Sunday afternoon World Series game. This was the one game the eventual Super Bowl champion 49ers lost during the 1984 season.

Scoring Drives:

Week 8 (Sunday October 21, 1984): at Indianapolis Colts

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 3 10 0 3 16
Colts 0 0 0 17 17

at Hoosier Dome, Indianapolis, Indiana

Scoring Drives:

This game was particularly frustrating to Steeler fans. One week previous, the Steelers beat the San Francisco 49ers in San Francisco being the only team to beat the 49ers that year going 15-1 on the way to winning the Super Bowl. Then coming back East to play one of the worst teams of the season, the Indianapolis Colts, who had only 2 wins at that point and 4 total on the year, they lost on a last minute improbable play after leading throughout the game. The Colts third string quarterback, Mike Pagel, came off the bench in the third quarter and was leading a final minute drive from their 20. On the Colts 40 with 34 seconds left, Pagel avoided a near sack, scrambled right and threw down the middle of the field to WR Bernard Henry. The ball however went directly to the hands of Steeler CB Sam Washington who bobbled the ball. Between Washington and a few other Steeler defenders, WR Ray Butler burst through the gap, snatched the ball in the air and ran untouched 54 yards for the touchdown. The extra point sealed the game.[4] "And that's why they play the game."

Week 9 (Sunday October 28, 1984): vs. Atlanta Falcons

1 2 3 4 Total
Falcons 0 3 0 7 10
Steelers 7 7 14 7 35

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 10 (Sunday November 4, 1984): vs. Houston Oilers

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

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

The Steelers limited Warren Moon and Oliver Luck to 224 yards; the Oilers fumbled four times.

Week 11 (Sunday November 11, 1984): at Cincinnati Bengals

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 13 0 7 20
Bengals 3 0 12 7 22

at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio

Scoring Drives:

Week 12 (Monday November 19, 1984): at New Orleans Saints

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 14 0 10 24
Saints 3 10 0 14 27

at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Scoring Drives:

The Saints won their first Monday Night game in seven tries, and also avenged a 1974 Monday Night loss to the Steelers at Tulane Stadium. It was Pittsburgh's first loss to New Orleans since 1969 in what was the Steelers' final game in the NFL before moving to the AFC as part of the AFL-NFL merger.

Former Steelers linebacker Dennis Winston played for the Saints in this game. It was also a homecoming for Lipps, who played at nearby East St. John High School.

Week 13 (Sunday November 25, 1984): vs. San Diego Chargers

1 2 3 4 Total
Chargers 0 10 7 7 24
Steelers 3 21 21 7 52

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 14 (Sunday December 2, 1984): at Houston Oilers

1 2 3 4OT Total
Steelers 3 0 10 70 20
Oilers 3 10 0 73 23

at Astrodome, Houston, Texas

Scoring Drives:

The Steelers tied the game in the fourth yet fell in overtime, all despite intercepting Warren Moon three times.

Week 15 (Sunday December 9, 1984): vs. Cleveland Browns

1 2 3 4 Total
Browns 3 10 0 7 20
Steelers 7 10 3 3 23

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 16 (Sunday December 16, 1984): at Los Angeles Raiders

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 3 0 0 10 13
Raiders 0 0 0 7 7

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

Scoring Drives:

Standings

AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Pittsburgh Steelers(3) 9 7 0 .563 5–1 6–6 387 310 W2
Cincinnati Bengals 8 8 0 .500 3–3 6–6 339 339 W4
Cleveland Browns 5 11 0 .313 3–3 4–8 250 297 W1
Houston Oilers 3 13 0 .188 1–5 3–9 240 437 L2

Playoffs

Game summaries

AFC Divisional Playoff (Sunday December 30, 1984): at Denver Broncos

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

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

Scoring Drives:

The Steelers sacked John Elway four times and picked him off twice.

AFC Championship Game (Sunday January 6, 1985): at Miami Dolphins

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 7 7 7 7 28
Dolphins 7 17 14 7 45

at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

Scoring Drives:

Dan Marino threw four touchdowns and over 400 yards, outdueling Mark Malone's 312 yards and three scores; Miami picked off Malone three times.

Honors and awards

References

  1. 1 2 1984 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  2. ↑ 1985 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  3. ↑ "1984 Pittsburgh Steelers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-12-23.
  4. ↑ "Colts beat odds with a good tip", The Spokesman-Review, October 22, 1984, page 13.
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