1974 Pittsburgh Steelers season

1974 Pittsburgh Steelers season
Head coach	Chuck Noll
Owner	Art Rooney
Home field	Three Rivers Stadium
Results
Record	10–3–1
Division place	1st AFC Central
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs (Bills) 32–14 Won Conference Championship (Raiders) 24–13 Won Super Bowl IX (Vikings) 16–6
Pro Bowlers	6 PK Roy Gerela DT Joe Greene DE L. C. Greenwood LB Jack Ham RB Franco Harris LB Andy Russell
AP All-Pros	4 Joe Greene (1st team) L. C. Greenwood (1st team) Jack Ham (1st team) Roy Gerela (2nd team)
Team MVP	Glen Edwards
Timeline
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Offseason

NFL Draft

In the 1974 NFL Draft, Pittsburgh Steelers are the only team in NFL history to select four Pro Football Hall of Fame players in the same draft (Lynn Swann, Jack Lambert, John Stallworth, and Mike Webster).

• Round 1: Lynn Swann, USC
• Round 2: Jack Lambert, Kent State
• Round 4: John Stallworth, Alabama A&M
• Round 4: Jimmy Allen, UCLA
• Round 5: Mike Webster, Wisconsin
• Round 6: Jim Wolf, Prairie View A&M
• Round 6: Rick Druschel, North Carolina State
• Round 7: Allen Sitterle, North Carolina State
• Round 8: Mark Gefert, Purdue
• Round 9: Tommy Reamon, Missouri
• Round 9: Charlie Davis, TCU
• Round 10: Jim Kregel, Ohio State
• Round 10: Dave Atkinson, BYU
• Round 11: Dickey Morton, Arkansas
• Round 12: Hugh Lickiss, Simpson
• Round 13: Frank Kolch, Eastern Michigan
• Round 14: Bruce Henley, Rice
• Round 15: Larry Hunt, Iowa State
• Round 16: Octavus Morgan, Illinois
• Round 17: Larry Moore, Angelo State

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	TV	Game Site
1	Sunday September 15	Baltimore Colts	W 30–0	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium
2	Sunday September 22	at Denver Broncos	T 35–35 (OT)	NBC	Mile High Stadium
3	Sunday September 29	Oakland Raiders	L 17–0	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium
4	Sunday October 6	at Houston Oilers	W 13–7	NBC	Astrodome
5	Sunday October 13	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 34–24	NBC	Arrowhead Stadium
6	Sunday October 20	Cleveland Browns	W 20–16	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium
7	Monday October 28	Atlanta Falcons	W 24–17	ABC	Three Rivers Stadium
8	Sunday November 3	Philadelphia Eagles	W 27–0	CBS	Three Rivers Stadium
9	Sunday November 10	at Cincinnati Bengals	L 17–10	NBC	Riverfront Stadium
10	Sunday November 17	at Cleveland Browns	W 26–16	NBC	Cleveland Municipal Stadium
11	Monday November 25	at New Orleans Saints	W 28–7	ABC	Tulane Stadium
12	Sunday December 1	Houston Oilers	L 13–10	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium
13	Sunday December 8	at New England Patriots	W 21–17	NBC	Schaefer Stadium
14	Saturday December 14	Cincinnati Bengals	W 27–3	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium

Game summaries

Week 1: vs. Baltimore Colts

1 2 3 4 Total Colts 0 0 0 0 0 Steelers 3 13 7 7 30 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Sunday, September 15 Game weather: Scattered clouds, 63 degrees Game attendance: 48,890 Referee: Gordon McCarter Game information Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 31 3–0 Pittsburgh – Swann 54 pass from Gilliam (kick failed)9–0 Pittsburgh – Lewis 4 pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick)16–0 Pittsburgh – Harris 4 run (Gerela kick)23–0 Pittsburgh – Fuqua 4 run (Gerela kick)30–0 Top Passer: Joe Gilliam (PIT): 257 Yds Top Rusher: Franco Harris (PIT): 49 Yds Top Receiver: Lynn Swann (PIT): 94 Yds

Week 2: at Denver Broncos

1 2 3 4 OT Total Steelers 7 7 14 7 0 35 Broncos 21 0 7 7 0 35 at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado Date: Sunday, September 22 Game attendance: 50,858 Referee: Tommy Bell Game information Denver – Armstrong 45 pass from Johnson (Turner kick)0–7 Pittsburgh – Davis 61 pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick)7–7 Denver – Moses 7 pass from Johnson (Turner kick)7–14 Denver – Keyworth 1 run (Turner kick)7–21 Pittsburgh – Gilliam 1 run (Gerela kick)14–21 Pittsburgh – Davis 1 run (Gerela kick)21–21 Denver – Odoms 3 pass from Ramsey (Turner kick)21–28 Pittsburgh – Davis 1 run (Gerela kick)28–28 Pittsburgh – Fuqua 1 run (Gerela kick)35–28 Denver – Armstrong 23 pass from Ramsey (Turner kick)35–35 Top Passer: Joe Gilliam (PIT) 348Yds Top Rusher: Otis Armstrong (DEN) 131Yds Top Receiver: Otis Armstrong (DEN) 86Yds

Week 3: vs. Oakland Raiders

1 2 3 4 Total Raiders 7 10 0 0 17 Steelers 0 0 0 0 0 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Sunday, September 29 Game weather: Overcast, 61 degrees Game attendance: 48,304 Referee: Pat Haggerty Game information Oakland – Stabler 1 run (Blanda kick)0–7 Oakland – Branch 19 pass from Stabler (Blanda kick)0–14 Oakland – FG Blanda 35 0–17

Week 4: at Houston Oilers

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 0 3 3 7 13 Oilers 0 7 0 0 7 at Houston Astrodome, Houston, Texas Date: Sunday, October 6 Game attendance: 30,049 Referee: Bob Federic Game information Houston – B. Johnson 47 run (Butler kick)0–7 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 37 3–7 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 27 6–7 Pittsburgh – Pearson 9 run (Gerela kick)13–7

Week 5: at Kansas City Chiefs

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 7 17 10 0 34 Chiefs 3 7 7 7 24 at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri Date: Sunday, October 13 Game attendance: 65,517 Referee: Bernie Ulman Game information Kansas City – FG Stenerud 31 0–3 Pittsburgh – Bleier 2 run (Gerela kick) 7–3 Kansas City – Pearson 13 pass from Livingston (Stenerud kick)7–10 Pittsburgh – Pearson 3 run (Gerela kick)14–10 Pittsburgh – Edwards 49 interception return (Gerela kick)21–10 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 32 24–10 Kansas City – Taylor 10 pass from Livingston (Stenerud kick)24–17 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 45 27–17 Pittsburgh – Lewis 31 pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick) 34–17 Kansas City – Wright 13 pass from Livingston (Stenerud kick)34–24

Week 6: vs. Cleveland Browns

1 2 3 4 Total Browns 0 13 0 3 16 Steelers 7 7 3 3 20 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Sunday, October 20 Game weather: Mostly cloudy, 41 degrees Game attendance: 48,100 Referee: Ben Dreith Game information Pittsburgh – Pearson 6 run (Gerela kick)7–0 Pittsburgh – Harris 1 run (Gerela kick)14–0 Cleveland – Phipps 18 run (Cockroft kick)14–7 Cleveland – Morin 9 pass from Phipps (kick blocked)14–13 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 31 17–13 Cleveland – FG Cockroft 21 17–16 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 26 20–16

Week 7: vs. Atlanta Falcons

1 2 3 4 Total Falcons 0 14 0 3 17 Steelers 14 0 3 7 24 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Monday, October 28 Game weather: 58 degrees Game attendance: 48,094 Referee: Jim Tunney Game information Pittsburgh – Bleier 10 run (Gerela kick)7–0 Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 1 run (Gerela kick)14–0 Atlanta – Dodd 9 pass from Lee (Mike-Mayer kick)14–7 Atlanta – Burrow 24 pass from Lee (Mike-Mayer kick)14–14 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 33 17–14 Pittsburgh – Harris 7 run (Gerela kick)24–14 Atlanta – FG Mike-Mayer 32 24–17

Week 8 : vs. Philadelphia Eagles

1 2 3 4 Total Eagles 0 0 0 0 0 Steelers 7 10 10 0 27 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Sunday, November 3 Game weather: Light rain/fog, 62 degrees Game attendance: 47,996 Referee: Tommy Bell Game information Pittsburgh – Lewis 8 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)7–0 Pittsburgh – Harris 5 run (Gerela kick)14–0 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 35 17–0 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 28 20–0 Pittsburgh – Blount 52 interception return (Gerela kick)27–0

Week 9: at Cincinnati Bengals

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 0 3 0 7 10 Bengals 0 10 7 0 17 at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio Date: Sunday, November 10 Game attendance: 57,532 Referee: Norm Schachter Game information Cincinnati – Williams 2 run (Muhlmann kick)0–7 Cincinnati – FG Muhlmann 30 0–10 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 24 3–10 Cincinnati – Williams 1 run (Muhlmann kick)3–17 Pittsburgh – Pearson 1 run (Gerela kick)10–17

Week 10: at Cleveland Browns

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 7 6 0 13 26 Browns 3 3 10 0 16 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Date: Sunday, November 17 Game attendance: 77,195 Referee: Fred Silva Game information Cleveland – FG Cockroft 44 0–3 Pittsburgh – Shanklin 28 pass from Hanratty (Gerela kick)7–3 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 32 10–3 Cleveland – FG Cockroft 35 10–6 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 32 13–6 Cleveland – Green 36 interception return (Cockroft kick)13–13 Cleveland – FG Cockroft 18 13–16 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 23 16–16 Pittsburgh – Thomas 14 fumble recovery return (Gerela kick) 23–16 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 22 26–16

This was the Steelers' first win in Cleveland since 1964.

Week 11: at New Orleans Saints

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 7 7 14 0 28 Saints 0 0 7 0 7 at Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, Louisiana Date: Monday, November 25 Game attendance: 69,010 Referee: Ben Dreith Game information Pittsburgh – Lewis 31 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 7–0 Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 18 run (Gerela kick)14–0 Pittsburgh – Swann 64 punt return (Gerela kick)21–0 New Orleans – Seal 10 pass from Scott (McClard kick)21–7 Pittsburgh – Brown 1 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)28–7

Week 12: vs. Houston Oilers

1 2 3 4 Total Oilers 0 7 3 3 13 Steelers 3 7 0 0 10 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Sunday, December 1 Game weather: Overcast, 37 degrees Game attendance: 41,195 Referee: Dick Jorgensen Game information Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 44 3–0 Houston – Willis 6 pass from Pastorini (Butler kick) 7–3 Pittsburgh – Harris 31 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)10–7 Houston – FG Butler 42 10–10 Houston – FG Butler 34 10–13

Week 13 : at New England Patriots

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 3 12 7 2 24 Patriots 7 3 0 7 17 at Schaefer Stadium, Foxboro, Massachusetts Date: Sunday, December 8 Game attendance: 52,107 Referee: Jim Tunney Game information New England – Herron 17 pass from Plunkett (Smith kick)0–7 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 40 3–7 Pittsburgh – Harris 2 run (kick blocked) 9–7 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 27 12–7 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 20 15–7 New England – FG Smith 20 15–10 Pittsburgh – Swann 7 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 22–10 Pittsburgh – Safety, Greenwood tackled Plunkett in end zone 24–10 New England – Herron 5 run (Smith kick)24–17

Week 14: vs. Cincinnati Bengals

1 2 3 4 Total Bengals 0 0 3 0 3 Steelers 7 10 7 3 27 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Saturday, December 14 Game weather: Drizzle, 38 degrees Game attendance: 42,878 Referee: Bernie Ulman Game information Pittsburgh – Stallworth 5 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)7–0 Pittsburgh – Mullins 7 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)14–0 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 26 17–0 Cincinnati – FG Muhlmann 32 17–3 Pittsburgh – Harris on 1 run (Gerela kick)24–3 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 42 27–3

Standings

AFC Central
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA
Pittsburgh Steelers	10	3	1	.750	4–2	7–3–1	305	189
Houston Oilers	7	7	0	.500	4–2	7–4	236	282
Cincinnati Bengals	7	7	0	.500	3–3	5–6	283	259
Cleveland Browns	4	10	0	.286	1–5	3–8	251	344

Postseason

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	TV	Game Site
Divisional	Sunday December 22	Buffalo Bills	W 32–14	NBC	Three Rivers Stadium
Championship	Sunday December 29	Oakland Raiders	W 24–13	NBC	Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum
Super Bowl IX	Sunday January 12	Minnesota Vikings	W 16–6	NBC	Tulane Stadium

Game summaries

AFC Divisional: vs. Buffalo Bills

1 2 3 4 Total Bills 7 0 7 0 14 Steelers 3 26 0 3 32 at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Date: Sunday, December 22 Game time: 12:30 pm EST Game weather: Light snow, 34 degrees Game attendance: 48,321 Referee: Norm Schachter TV: NBC Game information Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 21 PIT 3–0 Buffalo – Seymour 22 pass from Ferguson (Leypoldt kick) BUF 7–3 Pittsburgh – Bleier 27 pass from Bradshaw (kick blocked) PIT 9–7 Pittsburgh – Harris 1 run (Gerela kick) PIT 16–7 Pittsburgh – Harris 4 run (kick blocked) PIT 22–7 Pittsburgh – Harris 1 run (Gerela kick) PIT 29–7 Buffalo – Simpson 3 pass from Ferguson (Leypoldt kick) PIT 29–14 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 22 PIT 32–14

O. J. Simpson was held to 49 yds. rushing.It was the only playoff game of O.J.'s career

AFC Championship: at Oakland Raiders

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 0 3 0 21 24 Raiders 3 0 7 3 13 at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California Date: Sunday, December 29 Game time: 4:00 pm EST Game weather: Partly cloudy, 53 degrees Game attendance: 53,515 Referee: Jim Tunney TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis, and Don Meredith Game information Oakland – FG Blanda 40 OAK 3–0 Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 23 3–3 Oakland – Branch 38 pass from Stabler (Blanda kick) OAK 10–3 Pittsburgh – Harris 8 run (Gerela kick) 10–10 Pittsburgh – Swann 6 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) PIT 17–10 Oakland – FG Blanda 24 PIT 17–13 Pittsburgh – Harris 21 run (Gerela kick) PIT 24–13

The Oakland Raiders were held to 29 yds. rushing by the new "stunt 4–3" defense . Franco Harris ran for 111 yds rushing and two touchdowns and Rocky Blier ran for 98 yds.

Super Bowl IX: vs. Minnesota Vikings

Main article: Super Bowl IX

1 2 3 4 Total Steelers 0 2 7 7 16 Vikings 0 0 0 6 6 at Tulane Stadium, New Orleans, Louisiana Date: Sunday, January 12 Game time: 3:00 pm EST Game weather: Overcast, 46 degrees Game attendance: 80,997 Referee: Bernie Ulman TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy, Al DeRogatis, and Don Meredith Game information Pittsburgh – Safety: Dwight White downed Fran Tarkenton in end zone 2–0 PIT Pittsburgh – TD: Franco Harris 9 yard run (Roy Gerela kick) 9–0 PIT Minnesota – TD: Terry Brown recovered blocked punt in end zone (kick failed) 9–6 PIT Pittsburgh – TD: Larry Brown 4 yard pass from Terry Bradshaw (Roy Gerela kick) 16–6 PIT

Minnesota was held to 17 yds rushing and threw three interceptions. Franco Harris was named MVP running for 158 yds and a touchdown. This was the first of four Super Bowl championships for the Steelers and their core players of that era from 1974 – 1980.

Awards, Honors and Records

• Joe Greene, National Football League Defensive Player of the Year Award
• Franco Harris, Super Bowl Most Valuable Player