A History of Pittsburgh Steelers Super Bowl Title Defenses

​The Pittsburgh Steelers joined the National Football League (NFL) in 1933. Since then, the Steelers have won six Super Bowls in eight appearances. Pittsburgh’s six championships are tied with the New England Patriots for most of all time. Furthermore, the Steelers are the only NFL team to repeat as Super Bowl champions on multiple occasions.

Before the 1974 season, the Steelers had only made three postseason appearances. The franchise had only managed five winning seasons before an 11-3 season in 1972, which resulted in the team’s first trip to the conference championship. Under head coach Chuck Knoll and quarterback Terry Bradshaw, the 1973 team enjoyed similar regular season success but lost to the Oakland Raiders in the first round of the playoffs.

The Steelers posted a third consecutive season of double-digit wins in 1974, and for the first time in franchise history, won multiple postseason games, advancing to Super Bowl IX. Following 32-14 and 24-13 wins over the Buffalo Bills and Oakland Raiders, respectively, the Steelers faced the 12-4 Minnesota Vikings. While Joe Gilliam and the Pittsburgh offense struggled to generate touchdowns, the defense held Minnesota to just six points, resulting in the team’s first Super Bowl win. Franco Harris, who ran for 158 yards and one touchdown, was named Most Valuable Player.

A healthy Bradshaw returned to the Steelers in 1975, and Pittsburgh set a new record for regular season wins, going 12-2 and advancing to the Super Bowl once more, this time after wins against the Raiders and Baltimore Colts. In both contests, the Steelers held opponents to just one touchdown.

The Dallas Cowboys took a 10-7 lead into the fourth quarter against the defending champions, but a blocked kick safety gave the Steelers life. A pair of Roy Gerela field goals gave Pittsburgh a five point lead, and a 64-yard touchdown pass from Bradshaw to Lynn Swann put a cap on the 21-17 victory and successful title defense. It was the third time an NFL team had repeated as Super Bowl champions.

The league, and Steelers fans, would not have to wait long for another Super Bowl title defense. The 1976 Steelers went 10-4 and advanced to the conference finals but lost to the Raiders. The 1977 team won nine of 14 games, the franchise’s first season of fewer than 10 wins in six years. However, the combination of Bradshaw and coach Noll proved itself again in 1978, leading the team to an all-time great 14-2 regular season. Pittsburgh dominated the opening rounds of the playoffs with a 33-10 victory over the Denver Broncos and a 34-5 Houston Oilers win. Dallas challenged the Pittsburgh defense with 31 points, but the Steeler offense generated a post-season-best 35 points for the win.

The 1979 Steelers won 12 games and cruised through the postseason, averaging 30 points in wins over the Miami Dolphins, Oilers, and Los Angeles Rams. In defending another Super Bowl title, the Steelers completed a postseason run of 13 wins and two losses.

While Noll and Bradshaw remained in Pittsburgh for several seasons, the 1970s marked the end of the Steelers dynasty. The team won four championships in six seasons and posted a cumulative regular season record of 67-20-1. The franchise would add additional championship titles in 2005 and 2008. It would be a decade before another team repeated as Super Bowl champions, and the Steelers remain the only NFL franchise to defend a Super Bowl title more than once.

Robert Palley

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