The Pittsburgh Steelers Have the Best Fans in the NFL

I have been a Pittsburgh Steeler fan since I was a little girl growing up in the 1970's. Like so many Steeler fans, I did not grow up in the Pittsburgh area. In fact, I grew up in Fresno, California. California had plenty of teams for me to choose from back then, my moms favorite team the Oakland Raiders, my dads team the San Francisco 49'ers, no one's favorite team, also known as the San Diego Chargers, or the Los Angeles Rams. I had a soft spot for the Rams because I thought their colors were pretty, and because as a Niner fan, it really irritated my dad. The Rams however, were only ever 2nd in my heart.

There was a wicked good team in the 1970's, in fact they were the best team in that decade, the Pittsburgh Steelers. Black and gold, big and tough, fun to watch and champions, they had me at hello. The Steelers became my team, much to the chagrin of my parents and siblings (dad brain washed the boys into being Niner fans, poor things). My favorite aunt in the world lived in Dallas on and off, and was a big Dallas Cowboys fan. I adored her anyway, but over the years I learned to loathe her team, and I still do. I now live in the Dallas area myself, surrounded by Cowgirl fans, I mean Cowboy fans. It is pretty easy to be a Steeler fan here since my team wins and their team seems to have a lot of issues. I have my Steeler sticker on my car, almost my entire entertainment room is devoted to the Steelers, I sport my Steeler jersey's and 'Super Bowl Champions' shirts all over town. In three years of living here, I have already had the pleasure of hosting two Super Bowl parties as the resident Steeler fan, and I got to watch my team win both of them. My neighbor is from the Pittsburgh area and loves our Steelers too (it really annoys her husband, a Cowboy fan). It's good to be a Pittsburgh Steeler fan and now I'm going to give you my top 10 reasons why the Steeler fans are the best in the NFL.

10) We are as tough as our team. If we talk smack sometimes, it is only because we can back it up, just like our team does.

9) No matter where we are in the world, no matter where we live (even in Dallas, Tx) we are part of Steeler Nation! We will wear our jerseys, throw on our bumper stickers, and wave our beautiful yellow towels for all the world to see.

8) We love our team and we support them at all times. Even when they suck, we support them and do not abandon ship. We are die-hards. We are not fair-weather fans.

7) Heinz Field. It is a beautiful stadium that opened in 2001. The reason they were able to get a new stadium was because the fans supported it and voted to approve the public bonds. Steeler fans rock the stadium, you will always know you are in Steeler Country when you show up to play at Heinz Field.

6) Three head coaches since 1969, and each one of them has at least one Super Bowl Championship to his name. The Steelers are run by the Rooney family, and they sure know how to pick great coaches. Those coaches come to Pittsburgh and stay for years, because it is a great organization. They also stay because it is the best fan base in the world. We support our coaches, stick with them and give them our trust, and they don't let us down.

5) Steeler Nation. We are everywhere and we will travel all over the place to see our team play. There is no stadium that the Steelers are playing in, that you won't find thousands of Steeler fans running amok. We want our team to feel like it is a home game, every game.

4) Nothing prevents a Steeler fan from making it to the game if they have a ticket. Rain, sleet, snow, fog, mud, doesn't matter, the fans will fill up the stadium.

3) No whining. We get screwed over by the refs plenty of times, and we will boo them for it. However, this is a blue collar team, and no whining is allowed from the players, the coaches, or the fans. You will never hear, "That's not fair!" We understand that life isn't fair, and that 9 times out of 10 our team will overcome any bad calls or missed calls.

2) The Terrible Towel. Myron Cope invented this little treasure back in the 70's and it is known throughout the world today. The 'Towel' is a staple in every Steeler fans household, and we wave it proudly. It drives the opponents and their fans crazy, our funny yellow towel. They look up to see thousands waving them, and get upset because they aren't even playing in Pittsburgh. Everyone knows the curse of Myron Cope's Terrible Towel, if you trash it or disrespect it in anyway, you will lose. Just ask the Tennessee Titans about that. Don't ever mess with the towel. Ever.

1) 6 SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONSHIPS. The Pittsburgh Steelers have more Super Bowl trophies than any team in the NFL, and that gives the Steeler fans all the bragging rights. Sorry Dallas(5), too bad 49'ers(5), you wish you had 6, but you don't. We are the Champions my friends. Looking forward to number 7.