NFL Team History: The Pittsburgh Steelers

The professional football franchise owned by Art Rooney located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, originally identified as the Pittsburgh Pirates, began competing in the National Football League in 1933. The Pittsburgh franchise is the fifth oldest franchise in the NFL.

The Pirates faced the New York Giants in their first NFL Game. The Giants welcomed the Pirates to the NFL by defeating them 23-2. The Pirates would record their first victory a week later by edging out the Chicago Cardinals 14-13. Unfortunately, the Pirates were unable to maintain the momentum as they posted a record of 3 wins, 6 losses, and 2 ties in the introductory campaign.

In fact, the Pirates best record throughout the decade of 1930's would occur in 1936 when they posted a 6-6 record.

The Pittsburgh based franchise encountered several major changes as the 1940's commenced. Following the 1940 NFL season, owner Art Rooney sold the franchise to Alexis Thompson. Following the sale, Rooney acquired 50% interest in the Philadelphia Eagles franchise. Rooney and Eagles co-owner Bert Bell arranged a deal to exchange the two Pennsylvania franchises. When it was all said and done, Rooney's new Pittsburgh team was the former Philadelphia squad.

In 1941, the Rooney and Bell changed the franchise name from Pirates to Steelers. The name Steelers originated from the fact that Pittsburgh was a leading city in the steel industry.

The 1942 season marked the first winning season for the Steelers as they won 7 games versus 4 losses.

Unfortunately, World War II brought on a shortage of players forcing several teams to disband. However, some teams opted to combine resources with opposing teams. For instance, in 1943, the Steelers and the Eagles united forming a team which was referred to as Phil-Pitt. A year later, the Steelers fused with the Chicago Cardinals, and were identified as Card-Pitt.

Conditions in 1945 allowed the Steelers to return to their former state of autonomy.

A devastating 21-0 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in the 1947 post-season game began an agonizing procession of 25 seasons without a post-season berth.

In the middle of the Steelers post-season absence, they would release quarterback Johnny Unitas, and then watch him emerge into a football legend with the Baltimore Colts.

Despite the lack of post-season appearances, the Steelers posted winning seasons in 1949, 1958, 1959, 1962, and 1963.

The Steelers hired Chuck Knoll, former defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Colts, as the head coach prior to the 1969 NFL season.

In 1970, the Steelers selected quarterback Terry Bradshaw out of Louisiana Tech as the first overall draft pick.

The 1970 season was also momentous for the Steelers as they were reassigned to the AFC as a result of the NFL-AFL merger. They joined the Cincinnati Bengals, Houston Oilers, and Cleveland Browns in the AFC Central Division. They were 5-9 in their first season in the AFC.

The Steelers ended a fruitless 25-year post-season drought as they posted an 11-3 record in 1972. The new AFC Central Division champions were playoff contenders for the first time since 1947.

Their playoff game versus the Oakland Raiders was decided by what has commonly been referred to as 'The Immaculate Reception'. With only 22 seconds remaining in the playoff contest, the Steelers were faced with an unenviable fourth down situation. Quarterback Terry Bradshaw threw a pass which was intended for John Fuqua when Raiders defensive back Jack Tatum knocked the pass away. However, running back Franco Harris miraculously caught the ball and scored the game-winning touchdown. Ultimately, the Steelers were denied their first Super Bowl appearance as they were defeated by the Miami Dolphins 21-17.

In 1974, the Steelers qualified for the post-season for a third consecutive season. Their post-season run began with a 32-14 victory over the Buffalo Bills leading to an AFC Championship showdown with the Oakland Raiders a week later. After a 24-13 triumph, the Steelers were Super Bowl-bound for the first time.

In Super Bowl IX, the Steelers conquered the 'big prize' by defeating the Minnesota Vikings 16-6.

The Steelers shielded their Super Bowl championship a year later as they edged out the Dallas Cowboys 21-17 in Super Bowl X.

The Steelers and Cowboys faced off again three years later for the Super Bowl trophy. In Super Bowl XIII, the Steelers held the Cowboys at bay for the majority of the contest and went on to win by a score of 35-31.

In 1979, the Steelers captured their fourth Super Bowl championship in six years by strong-arming the Los Angeles Rams 31-19.

Following their decade of dominance, the Steelers began to lose some of their key components to their Super Bowl championship teams. 'Mean' Joe Greene retired following the 1981 season, Lynn Swann and Jack Ham stepped away from the game after the 1982 season, Terry Bradshaw and Mel Blount retired from the organization after the 1983 season, and Jack Lambert left the organization following the 1984 campaign.

In 1984, Steelers reached the AFC Championship Game for the first time since 1979 when they captured the Super Bowl. However, they were no match for Dan Marino and the Miami Dolphins as they were trounced by a score of 45-28.

The Steelers would not appear in another playoff game until 1989.

Following the 1991 season, long-time head coach Chuck Knoll retired from his head coach position ending a 22-year tenure with the franchise. The Steelers replaced the legendary coach with the young Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Bill Cowher.

In 1992, under their new head coach's leadership, the Steelers reached the AFC Championship Game. The return to prominence was halted by the Buffalo Bills as the AFC's most dominant team sent the Steelers back to Pittsburgh following a 24-3 pounding.

In 1994, the Steelers finished the regular season with a 12-4 record, their best since 1979, which was also last year they won the Super Bowl. However, the San Diego Chargers 17-13 victory at Three Rivers Stadium in the AFC Championship Game ended the Steelers superb season.

A year later, the Steelers returned to the Big Game as they barely defeated the Indianapolis Colts 20-16 in the AFC Championship contest. The Steelers would face the Dallas Cowboys in their fifth Super Bowl expedition. In Super Bowl XXX, the Cowboys handed the Steelers their first Super Bowl loss with a 27-17 victory. Prior to the game, the Steelers were a perfect 4-0 in the Super Bowl appearances.

The Steelers hosted the 1997 AFC Championship showdown against the Denver Broncos. Despite playing in the friendly confines of Three Rivers Stadium, the Broncos, led by John Elway, took home the AFC Championship trophy with a 24-21 win. The loss notwithstanding, the Steelers appeared in four AFC championship games throughout the decade of the 1990's.

Following three consecutive seasons in which the Steelers failed to clinch a single playoff berth, the Steelers posted a 13-3 record and played host to the New England Patriots in the 2001 AFC Championship Game. Unfortunately, the Patriots, led by quarterback Tom Brady, denied the Steelers of their sixth Super Bowl appearance by handing the team in black and gold attire a 24-17 defeat.

The Steelers clinched a playoff spot again in 2002, and defeated the Cleveland Browns in the first round; however, they were eliminated a week later by the Tennessee Titans.

In 2004, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected quarterback Ben Roethlisberger from Miami University of Ohio as their first pick in the NFL draft. As a rookie, Roethlisberger surprisingly led the Steelers to an NFL-best 15-1 regular season record. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh fans, the New England Patriots demoralized the Steelers by defeating them 41-27 at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field. On a finer note, the Steelers sent nine players to the NFL Pro Bowl.

A year later, the Steelers entered the 2005 post-season as the sixth seed in the AFC. After defeating the Cincinnati Bengals on the road, the Steelers stunned the top-seeded Indianapolis Colts 21-18 in the divisional playoff game. The Colts had posted a remarkable 14-2 regular season record and were the clear-cut favorites to capture the Super Bowl. A week later the Steelers defeated as the Denver Broncos on the Broncos home turf and earned their sixth Super Bowl appearance.

In Super Bowl XL, the Steelers defeated the Seattle Seahawks 21-10 to claim their fifth Super Bowl Championship, joining the Dallas Cowboys and San Francisco 49ers as the only teams to accomplish that feat. Moreover, the Steelers became the first sixth seeded team to capture the Super Bowl title.

Following their Super Bowl conquest, running back Jerome Bettis announced his retirement from the NFL.

On June 12, 2006, the Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who at 23 years old was the youngest quarterback to lead his team to a Super Bowl victory, encountered a little bit of controversy. He was involved in a motorcycle accident while failing to wear a helmet. Additionally, Roethlisberger did not possess a valid Pennsylvania motorcycle license. Although the wreck was serious, it was not life threatening and Roethlisberger has made a full recovery. He would miss the opening game of the 2006 season due to an emergency appendectomy.

Following a disappointing 2006 season, Steelers head coach Bill Cowher retired and was replaced with former Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin. Tomlin became the first African-American head coach of the Steelers franchise.