PITTSBURGH – The answers to why the Steelers have sustained excellence through the decades can be found along the snow-capped mountains of this working-class town in western Pennsylvania.
Already the proud owners of an historic six Super Bowl titles, the Pittsburgh Steelers are playing in their 15th American Football Conference Championship for the right to appear in their eighth Super Bowl and claim their seventh Lombardi trophy.
But why have the Steelers been able to sustain a level of excellence over the course of forty years? Local pundits and Steelers faithful provide a variety of answers that could explain how this team could do what no other team in NFL history could do — win and win consistently over such an extended period of time. And it starts with innovation and a lack of fear of public reprisals for stocking their roster with unpopular, but singular, talent.
“One, is the lack of reluctance to bring in black players,” says the New Pittsburgh Courier Managing Editor Ulish Carter, speaking of the Steel Curtain Steelers of the 1970s. “A lot of teams at one point felt that the audience [the fans] would not accept a lot of black players. They brought the best black players in here, they won, and eventually the other teams followed the Steelers. But the key is the other teams following the Steelers; [those teams] are not leading.”
That wasn’t the case with the Rooney family. After hiring Hall of Fame coach Chuck Noll, the first order of business was securing the rights to the best player available in the draft, another Hall of Famer — “Mean” Joe Green — in 1972.
The rest of the recipe for success seems almost kismet:
Continuity I: The Rooney family has done everything in Pittsburgh but have their likeness carved into one of the mountains that overlook the city. You cannot underestimate the value to the Steelers franchise to have only one family own the team through almost 80 years of existence — and to have that ownership be principled, fiscally frugal, loyal and fair.
Continuity II: The Steelers have only seen three head coaches lord over the franchise in the last forty years, an unprecedented feat among any major sport in the modern era. This is a contrast from their tumultuous origins of the ‘30s and ‘40s when they changed coaches as often as a shift in the wind patterns.
The Fans: Steeler disciples stayed with the squad through their atrocious beginnings and have been rewarded amply for sticking with their team. “It’s a hometown team, and we are noted for liking our Steelers, regardless,” says Art Tavern owner, Arthur Jefferies.
That Defense: Pittsburgh has the NFL’s best collection of defensive players (Troy Polamalu, James Harrison, LaMarr Woodley, Casey Hampton, Aaron Smith, etc.) and the best defensive coordinator, Dick LeBeau.
Putting the Team Over the Individual: “They look at team rather than individual players. And that’s why they had no problem when [Ben] Rothlisburger went through his suspension for four games. The Steelers went 3-1 without him, and almost went 4-0,” Carter said. “That says something about Tomlin’s coaching because, think about it, your first-string quarterback is gone. Not only that, your second-string quarterback went out. You have a third-string quarterback leading the offense, and then he gets hurt. You have [fourth-string QB] Charlie Batch starting for two games and they almost went undefeated in four games.”
–terry shropshire
