1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season

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1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season
OwnerArt Rooney
General managerDaniel M. Rooney
Head coachChuck Noll
Home fieldThree Rivers Stadium
Results
Record12–2
Division place1st AFC Central
Playoff finishWon Divisional Playoffs
(vs. Colts) 28–10
Won AFC Championship
(vs. Raiders) 16–10
Won Super Bowl X
(vs. Cowboys) 21–17
Pro Bowlers
AP All-Pros
7
  • Mel Blount (1st team)
  • L. C. Greenwood (1st team)
  • Jack Ham (1st team)
  • Franco Harris (2nd team)
  • Joe Greene (2nd team)
  • Jack Lambert (2nd team)
  • Lynn Swann (2nd team)
Team MVPMel Blount
Team ROYJohn Banaszak

The 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 43rd in the National Football League (NFL). The Steelers were defending champions for the first time in their forty-year history and repeated as league champions. The team was led by a dominating defense and a quick offense, and won Super Bowl X over the Dallas Cowboys, 21–17. The 1975 Steelers had one of the greatest defensive teams of all time. The team posted their best defensive numbers since 1946, and scored more points than any other Steelers team, later surpassed by two points in 2010.

In 2007, the 1975 Steelers were ranked as the seventh greatest Super Bowl champions on the NFL Network's documentary series America's Game: The Super Bowl Champions, with team commentary from Lynn Swann, Dwight White, and Mike Wagner, and narrated by Bruce Willis. More than a decade later, the team ranked #10 on the 100 greatest teams of all time presented by the NFL on its 100th anniversary.[1][2] The 1975 Steelers' +211 point differential stands as the best in franchise history. They won by at least 21 points six times, with their season superlative 37–0 shutout at San Diego in the opener on September 21.[3][4]

Offseason[edit]

NFL Draft[edit]

1975 Pittsburgh Steelers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 26 Dave Brown *  CB Michigan played one season for Steelers; selected by the Seattle Seahawks in the expansion draft
2 51 Bob Barber  DE Grambling playing for Packers; 1976-79
3 78 Walter White  TE Maryland Traded to Chiefs
4 104 Harold Evans  LB Houston
5 130 Brent Sexton  DB Elon
6 156 Marvin Crenshaw  T Nebraska
7 180 Wayne Mattingly  T Colorado
8 208 Al Humphrey  DE Tulsa
9 234 Bruce Reimer  RB North Dakota State
10 260 Archie Grey  WR Wyoming
11 286 Randy Little  TE West Liberty
12 312 Greg Murphy  DE Penn State
13 337 Bob Gaddis  WR Mississippi Valley State played mostly in CFL
14 364 Mike Collier  RB Morgan State played one season for Steelers
15 390 Marty Smith  DT Louisville
16 415 Miller Bassler  TE Houston
17 442 Stan Hegener  G Nebraska

Personnel[edit]

Staff[edit]

1975 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.
  • Public relations director – Ed Kiely
  • Traveling secretary – James A. Boston
  • Publicity director – Joe Gordon
  • Controller – Robert P. Quinn
  • Accountant – Dennis P. Thimons
  • Ticket manager – Joseph H. Carr
  • Director of player personnel – Dick Haley
  • Assistant director of player personnel – Bill Nunn
  • Director of professional scouting – V. Timothy Rooney

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches


Strength and conditioning

  • Strength – Louis Riecke
  • Flexibility – Paul Uram
  • Team physician, orthopedic – Dr. John Best
  • Team Physician, M.D. – Dr. David S. Huber
  • Team dentist – Dr. George P. Boucek
  • Trainer – Ralph Berlin
  • Assistant trainer – Robert Milie
  • Equipment manager – Anthony Parisi
  • Field manager – Jack Hart
  • Film director – Bob McCartney
  • Photographer – Harry Homa

[5]

Roster[edit]

1975 Pittsburgh Steelers final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad [6] [7] [8]
Rookies in italics
43 active, 1 inactive

Preseason[edit]

During the preseason, the Steelers acquired undrafted free-agent, John Banaszak. The Defensive tackle from Eastern Michigan played in three games and later became the 1975 Team ROY (Rookie of the Year).

Schedule[edit]

Week Date Opponent Result Venue
1 August 1 College All-Stars W 21–14 Soldier Field
2 August 9 Philadelphia Eagles L 14–17 Three Rivers Stadium
3 August 17 Oakland Raiders L 21–24 Memorial Stadium
4 August 22 at Baltimore Colts W 31–10 Memorial Stadium
5 August 30 New York Giants L 7–24 Palmer Stadium
6 September 6 New Orleans Saints W 24–13 Three Rivers Stadium
7 September 13 at Dallas Cowboys L 16–17 Texas Stadium

Regular season[edit]

Schedule[edit]

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

Game summaries[edit]

Week 1[edit]

1 234Total
Steelers 10 10314 37
Chargers 0 000 0

In the Week 1 game, the Steelers opened the season as defending champions, and crushed the Chargers, 37-0, in San Diego.[3][4] (1-0)

Week 2[edit]

1 234Total
Bills 0 10137 30
Steelers 0 0714 21

In Week 2, the Steelers, coming off a crushing defeat of the Chargers in Week 1, came to play revenge eager Buffalo in Pittsburgh. The Bills had been beaten the previous year by the Steelers in the playoffs, 32-14. Chuck Noll had warned the team the previous week that the team did not play very well, however, the players ignored him and were beaten by future Hall of Fame RB O.J. Simpson, 30-21. He rushed for 227 yards, including an 88-yard touchdown run in the 3rd quarter. (1-1)

Week 3[edit]

1 234Total
Steelers 7 21014 42
Browns 0 006 6

In this Week 3 matchup, the Steelers would be hosted by the Cleveland Browns. These two teams had already been established as one of the league's best rivalries by this time, and Joe Greene's infamous kicking of the Browns lineman Bob McKay only fueled the rivalry. The fight that broke out afterwards caught it on fire. Greene was later fined $500 while the Steelers beat the Browns, 42-6. (2-1) This was the first of eleven consecutive victories for the Steelers.

Week 4[edit]

1 234Total
Broncos 3 600 9
Steelers 7 1003 20
  • Date: October 12
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m., EST
  • Game attendance: 49,164
  • Game weather: 59 °F (15 °C) (Mostly Cloudy)
  • Referee: Dick Jorgensen
  • Television network: NBC

In Week 4, the Steelers beat the Denver Broncos in Three Rivers, 20-9. (3-1)

Week 5[edit]

1 234Total
Bears 0 300 3
Steelers 0 101014 34
  • Date: October 19
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m., EST
  • Game attendance: 47,579
  • Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C) (Cloudy)
  • Referee: Norm Schachter
  • Television network: CBS

In Week 5, the Steelers crushed Chicago, 34-3. Three weeks after the Steelers were beaten by Buffalo, the team was 4-1, and had allowed only 18 points during the last three weeks while scoring 96. (4-1)

Week 6[edit]

1 234Total
Steelers 3 1003 16
Packers 0 670 13

In Week 5, the Packers would host the Steelers in Milwaukee, however, the tense battle ended in Pittsburgh's favor, 16-13. (5-1)

Week 7[edit]

1 234Total
Steelers 0 10137 30
Bengals 3 0021 24

In Week 7, the Steelers played the Bengals in Riverfront Stadium and won the game, 30–24. (6–1)

Week 8[edit]

1 234Total
Oilers 0 737 17
Steelers 10 707 24
  • Date: November 9
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m., EST
  • Game attendance: 49,460
  • Game weather: 75 °F (24 °C) (Sunny)
  • Referee: Jim Tunney
  • Television network: NBC

In this heated Week 8 battle, the Steelers would play host to the Houston Oilers. Pittsburgh sealed the win with a 4th quarter touchdown pass from #12 Terry Bradshaw to #82 John Stallworth that placed them at the top of the division. (7-1)

Week 9[edit]

1 234Total
Chiefs 0 300 3
Steelers 0 7147 28
  • Date: November 16
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m., EST
  • Game attendance: 48,803
  • Game weather: 55 °F (13 °C) (Partly Cloudy)
  • Referee: Bernie Ulman
  • Television network: NBC

In Week 9, the Steelers beat the Chiefs, 28-3. (8-1)

Week 10[edit]

1 234Total
Steelers 2 13314 32
Oilers 0 306 9

In Week 10, the Steelers defeated the Oilers again, this time in Houston 32-9, and secured a playoff spot. (9-1)

Week 11[edit]

1 234Total
Steelers 0 10100 20
Jets 0 007 7

In Week 11, the Steelers beat the Jets 20-7. (10-1)

Week 12[edit]

1 234Total
Browns 3 1400 17
Steelers 7 3147 31
  • Date: December 7
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m., EST
  • Game attendance: 47,962
  • Game weather: 38 °F (3 °C) (Sunny), Wind 11 mph (18 km/h)
  • Referee: Pat Haggerty
  • Television network: NBC

In another defeat of Cleveland in Week 13, 31-17, the Steelers continued their winning streak to 10. (11-1)

Week 13[edit]

1 234Total
Bengals 0 707 14
Steelers 14 777 35
  • Date: Saturday, December 13
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 12:30 p.m., EST
  • Game attendance: 48,889
  • Game weather: 57 °F (14 °C), (Sunny) wind 8 mph (13 km/h)
  • Referee: Ben Dreith
  • Television network: NBC

In Week 13, the Steelers finished the sweep of the division by beating the Bengals again, 35-14. (12-1)

Week 14[edit]

1 234Total
Steelers 3 000 3
Rams 0 307 10

In the meaningless Week 14 game, the Steelers were beaten by Los Angeles, 10-3. (12-2)

Standings[edit]

AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Pittsburgh Steelers(1) 12 2 0 .857 6–0 10–1 373 162 L1
Cincinnati Bengals(4) 11 3 0 .786 3–3 8–3 340 246 W1
Houston Oilers 10 4 0 .714 2–4 7–4 293 226 W3
Cleveland Browns 3 11 0 .214 1–5 2–8 218 372 L1

Stats[edit]

Quarter-by-quarter

Quarter-by-quarter
1 2 3 4 OT T
Steelers 63 118 81 111 0 373
Opponents 9 62 23 68 0 162

Postseason[edit]

Schedule[edit]

Week Date Opponent Result Venue
Divisional December 27 Baltimore Colts W 28–10 Three Rivers Stadium
AFC Championship January 4 Oakland Raiders W 16–10 Three Rivers Stadium
Super Bowl X January 18 Dallas Cowboys W 21–17 Miami Orange Bowl

Game summaries[edit]

Divisional[edit]

1 234Total
Colts 0 730 10
Steelers 7 0714 28
  • Franco Harris gained 152 yds rushing, one yard less than the Baltimore Colts offense. Andy Russell set a record for longest playoff fumble return.

AFC Championship[edit]

1 234Total
Raiders 0 0010 10
Steelers 0 3013 16
  • Date: January 4
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 50,609
  • Game weather: 16 °F (−9 °C) (Blowing Snow)
  • Referee: Ben Dreith
  • TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis, and Don Meredith

Pittsburgh won the game, despite giving up eight turnovers.[9]

Super Bowl[edit]

1 234Total
Cowboys 7 307 17
Steelers 7 0014 21
  • Lynn Swann earned the MVP award catching 4 receptions for 161 yards.
  • The Pittsburgh Steelers won their 2nd of their 6 Super Bowl championships.

Awards, honors, and records[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "NFL Top 100 Teams". Pro Football Reference.
  2. ^ "100 Greatest Teams: Numbers 100-1 SUPERCUT". NFL.com.
  3. ^ a b Stellino, Vito (September 22, 1975). "Steelers now taking care of business, 37-0". Pittsburgh Gazette. p. 16.
  4. ^ a b Musick, Phil (September 22, 1975). "Steelers throw switch on Chargers". Pittsburgh Press. p. 25.
  5. ^ 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  6. ^ 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  7. ^ 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  8. ^ "1975 Pittsburgh Steelers". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
  9. ^ "Number three". Three Rivers top Greatest Play and Game. PittsburghSteelers.com. Archived from the original on March 12, 2009. Retrieved August 7, 2008.

External links[edit]