The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the NFL’s most storied franchises, and the groundwork was set in the 1970s.
The Steelers suffered through plenty of losing before that era. However, things changed quickly when Chuck Noll became the team’s head coach. He helped the Steelers build a dynasty, wining four Super Bowls in the 70s.
Pro Football Hall of Fame wide receiver Cris Carter even thinks the 70s Steelers are the best dynasty in NFL history.
“That team right there and the collection of players that have gold jackets, it dominates anyone…” Carter said Tuesday on his Fully Loaded podcast. “To me, New England, it’s two batches. They won three and three. People try to put them together, but it’s totally different.
“The way the Steelers drafted, the way they developed their players. There’s no slight to anyone that’s on that list, but the Pittsburgh Steelers and how they did it and who they did it with, to me, supersedes any of the other stories,” Carter added.
The Steelers were terrible right before that decade started, going 1-13 during Noll’s first season with Pittsburgh in 1969. They took small steps forward to start the 70s before breaking through in 1972, winning a playoff game for the first time in franchise history thanks to the Immaculate Reception.
They didn’t look back after that. The Steelers made the playoffs in every season for the rest of the 70s, winning four championships in a six-year span. They went 99-44-1 in the regular season from 1970-79 and 14-4 in the playoffs during that same time frame.
That’s a great argument for the best dynasty in NFL history. However, Bill Belichick and Tom Brady’s New England Patriots have a good case to be better than the 70s Steelers.
The Patriots won six Super Bowls from 2001-2018 and were consistently one of the top teams in the league. Carter doesn’t count that as one dynasty, separating it because there was a 10-year gap between Super Bowls.
However, others might disagree with that take. The Patriots could also have a leg up because they had so much success while dealing with more modern rules, such as free agency. It was easier to keep a great team together in the 70s.
Still, the Steelers didn’t make the rules. They just followed them. The only thing that stopped Pittsburgh from winning more was injuries. The 70s Steelers were legendary, and they deserve to be talked about as one of the best teams of all time.
Recommended for you