1975 Pittsburgh Steelers

1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season
Head Coach	Chuck Noll
Home Field	Three Rivers Stadium
Results
Record	12–2
Place	1st AFC Central
Playoff Finish	Won Super Bowl X
Pro Bowlers	11 CB Mel Blount QB Terry Bradshaw S Glen Edwards DT Joe Greene DE L. C. Greenwood LB Jack Ham RB Franco Harris LB Jack Lambert LB Andy Russell WR Lynn Swann S Mike Wagner
Team MVP	Mel Blount
Timeline
Previous Season	Next Season
1974	1976

The Pittsburgh Steelers entered the 1975 season defending their AFC Central and Super Bowl IX titles from the 1974 season. Throughout the 1975 season they not only improved on their 10–3–1 record from the previous year, but once again won the AFC Central Division Title and their second franchise championship, in Super Bowl X.

During the team's divisional round playoff game against the Baltimore Colts, sportscaster Myron Cope urged fans to bring yellow dish towels to the game with them in order to support the team. The gimmick, originally a one-shot deal, was a surprise hit, and a longtime Steeler tradition, the Terrible Towel, was invented.

Offseason

NFL Draft

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

Coaches / Staff

1975 Pittsburgh Steelers final 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 Head coach – Chuck Noll Offensive Coaches Offensive backfield – Dick Hoak Offensive line – Dan Radakovich Receivers – Lionel Taylor			Defensive Coaches Defensive coordinator – Bud Carson Defensive line – George Perles Linebackers – Woody Widenhofer Special Teams 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

Roster

1975 Pittsburgh Steelers final roster
	Quarterbacks 12 Terry Bradshaw 17 Joe Gilliam  5 Terry Hanratty Running backs 20 Rocky Bleier 44 Mike Collier KR 33 John Fuqua 32 Franco Harris 46 Reggie Harrison Wide receivers 86 Reggie Garrett 43 Frank Lewis 82 John Stallworth 88 Lynn Swann Tight ends 87 Larry Brown 84 Randy Grossman		Offensive linemen 50 Jim Clack G 57 Sam Davis G 71 Gordon Gravelle T 55 Jon Kolb T 56 Ray Mansfield C 72 Gerry Mullins G/T 74 Dave Reavis T/G 52 Mike Webster C/G Defensive linemen 76 John Banaszak DE 64 Steve Furness DT 75 Joe Greene DT 68 L. C. Greenwood DE 63 Ernie Holmes DT 78 Dwight White DE		Linebackers 38 Ed Bradley MLB 59 Jack Ham OLB 54 Marv Kellum OLB 58 Jack Lambert MLB 34 Andy Russell OLB 51 Loren Toews OLB Defensive backs 45 Jimmy Allen DB 47 Mel Blount CB 36 Dave Brown DB 27 Glen Edwards FS/PR 31 Donnie Shell S 26 J. T. Thomas CB 23 Mike Wagner SS Special teams 52 Mike Webster LS 10 Roy Gerela K 39 Bobby Walden P/H		Reserve lists    Bob Gaddis WR (IR) Practice squad Rookies in italics 43 Active, 1 Inactive, Practice squad

Preseason

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

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	California 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

Schedule

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

Game summaries

Week 1 (Sunday September 21): San Diego Chargers

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Steelers	10	10	3	14		37
Chargers	0	0	0	0		0

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 35,853
• Referee: Gordon McCarter
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 29 3–0
• Pittsburgh – Lewis 40 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)10–0
• Pittsburgh – Mullins recovered fumble in end zone (Gerela kick)17–0
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 25 20–0
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 38 23–0
• Pittsburgh – Stallworth 38 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)30–0
• Pittsburgh – Collier 7 run (Gerela kick)37–0

Week 2 (Sunday September 28): Buffalo Bills

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Bills	0	10	13	7		30
Steelers	0	0	7	14		21

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,438
• Referee: Pat Haggerty
• TV announcers:

O.J. Simpson ran for 227 yards, including an 88 yard touchdown run, as the Bills upset the Steelers. Buffalo also scored on a lateral return after a Terry Bradshaw fumble. The Bills opened the game with 23 unanswered points. The Steelers made a second half comeback behind Joe Gilliam (Bradshaw was benched), but it wasn't enough.

Scoring Drives:

• Buffalo – Leypoldt 37 yard FG
• Buffalo – Kadish 26 yard fumble return (Leypoldt kick)
• Buffalo – Gant 7 yard pass from Ferguson (Leypoldt kick)
• Buffalo – Simpson 88 yard run (kick failed)
• Pittsburgh – Harris 2 yard run (Gerela kick)
• Buffalo – Chandler 28 yard pass from Ferguson (Leypoldt kick)
• Pittsburgh – Grossman 20 yard pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick)
• Pittsburgh – Harris 1 yard run (Gerela kick)

Week 3 (Sunday October 5): Cleveland Browns

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Steelers	7	21	0	14		42
Browns	0	0	0	6		6

at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 73,217
• Referee: Ben Dreith
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – Stallworth 3 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)7–0
• Pittsburgh – Harris 1 run (Gerela kick)14–0
• Pittsburgh – Collier 1 run (Gerela kick)21–0
• Pittsburgh – Swann 43 pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick)28–0
• Cleveland – McKinnis 7 run (kick failed)28–6
• Pittsburgh – Garrett 45 pass from Gilliam (Gerela kick)35–6
• Pittsburgh – Harrison 3 run (Gerela kick)42–6

Week 4 (Sunday October 12): Denver Broncos

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Broncos	3	6	0	0		9
Steelers	7	10	0	6		23

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,164
• Referee: Dick Jorgensen
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Denver – FG Turner 22 0–3
• Pittsburgh – Swann 43 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)7–3
• Pittsburgh – Swann 9 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick)14–3
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 39 17–3
• Denver – FG Turner 39 17–6
• Denver – FG Turner 36 17–9
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 28 20–9
• Pittsburgh- FG ((Roy Gerela)) 30 23–9

Week 5 (Sunday October 19): Chicago Bears

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Bears	0	3	0	0		3
Steelers	0	10	10	14		34

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 47,579
• Referee: Norm Schachter
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Chicago – FG Thomas 32 0–3
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 37 3–3
• Pittsburgh – Harrison 1 run (Gerela kick)10–3
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 18 13–3
• Pittsburgh – Harris 3 run (Gerela kick)20–3
• Pittsburgh – Bleier 3 run (Gerela kick)27–3
• Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 1 run (Gerela kick)34–3

Week 6 (Sunday October 26): Green Bay Packers

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Steelers	3	10	0	3		16
Packers	0	6	7	0		13

at Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee, Wisconsin

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 52,258
• Referee: Fred Silva
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 19 3–0
• Green Bay – Brockington 2 run (kick blocked)6–3
• Pittsburgh – Collier 94 kickoff return (Gerela kick)10–6
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 19 13–6
• Green Bay – Brockington 5 run (Danelo kick)13–13
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 29 16–13

Week 7 (Sunday November 2): Cincinnati Bengals

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Steelers	0	10	13	7		30
Bengals	3	0	0	21		24

at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 58,418
• Referee: Tommy Bell
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Cincinnati – FG Green 23 0–3
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 42 3–3
• Pittsburgh – Swann 37 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 10–3
• Pittsburgh – Bleier 3 run (Gerela kick) 17–3
• Pittsburgh – Swann 25 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed) 23–3
• Cincinnati – Joiner 34 pass from Anderson (Green kick) 24–10
• Cincinnati – E. Johnson 3 pass from Anderson (Green kick) 24–17
• Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 1 run (kick failed) 30–17
• Cincinnati – Myers 22 pass from Anderson (Green kick) 30–24

Week 8 (Sunday November 9): Houston Oilers

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Oilers	0	7	3	7		17
Steelers	10	7	0	7		24

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,460
• Referee: Jim Tunney
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 22 3–0
• Pittsburgh – Swann 8 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 10–0
• Houston – Coleman 3 run (Butler kick) 10–7
• Pittsburgh – L. Brown 6 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 17–7
• Houston – FG Butler 48 17–10
• Houston – Willis 1 run (Butler kick) 17–17
• Pittsburgh – Stallworth 21 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 24–17

Week 9 (Sunday November 16): Kansas City Chiefs

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Chiefs	0	3	0	0		3
Steelers	0	7	14	7		28

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 48,803
• Referee: Bernie Ulman
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Kansas City – FG Stenerud 32 0–3
• Pittsburgh – Swann 42 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 7–3
• Pittsburgh – Harrison 10 run (Gerela kick) 14–3
• Pittsburgh – Stallworth 16 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 21–3
• Pittsburgh – Collier 21 run (Gerela kick) 28–3

Week 10 (Monday November 24): Houston Oilers

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Steelers	2	13	3	14		32
Oilers	0	3	0	6		9

at the Houston Astrodome, Houston, Texas

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,947
• Referee: Bob Frederic
• TV announcers: Howard Cosell, Frank Gifford, Alex Karras

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – Safety, White tackled Pastorini in end zone 2–0
• Houston – FG Butler 27 2–3
• Pittsburgh – Harris 4 run (Gerela kick) 9–3
• Pittsburgh – Swann 18 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed) 15–3
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 30 18–3
• Pittsburgh – Fuqua 13 run (Gerela kick) 25–3
• Houston – Burrough 59 pass from Pastorini (kick failed) 25–9
• Pittsburgh – Harris 13 run (Gerela kick) 32–9

Week 11 (Sunday November 30): New York Jets

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Steelers	0	10	10	0		20
Jets	0	0	0	7		7

at Shea Stadium, Flushing, New York

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 52,618
• Referee: Cal Lepore
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 26 3–0
• Pittsburgh – Harris 44 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 10–0
• Pittsburgh – Lewis 8 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 17–0
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 19 20–0
• New York Jets – Barkum 6 pass from Namath (Leahy kick) 20–7

Week 12 (Sunday December 7): Cleveland Browns

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Browns	3	14	0	0		17
Steelers	7	3	14	7		31

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 47,962
• Referee: Pat Haggerty
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Cleveland – FG Cockroft 26 0–3
• Pittsburgh – Harris 3 run (Gerela kick) 7–3
• Cleveland – Pruitt 1 run (Cockroft kick) 7–10
• Cleveland – W. Miller 17 fumble return (Cockroft kick) 7–17
• Pittsburgh – Swann 3 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 14–17
• Pittsburgh – Swann 18 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 21–17
• Pittsburgh – Harris 8 run (Gerela kick) 28–17
• Pittsburgh-FG Roy Gerela 35 31–17

Week 13 (Saturday December 13): Cincinnati Bengals

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Bengals	0	7	0	7		14
Steelers	14	7	7	7		35

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time: 12:30 p.m.
• Game weather: 45°F / 7°C, wind 8 mph
• Game attendance: 48,889
• Referee: Ben Dreith
• TV announcers:

Game Summary Pittsburgh swept all 6 games in the AFC central division.

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – Swann 3 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 7–0
• Pittsburgh – Thomas 21 lateral from Lambert after fumble recovery (Gerela kick) 14–0
• Cincinnati – Fritts 1 run (Green kick) 14–7
• Pittsburgh – Harris 10 run (Gerela kick) 21–7
• Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 7 run (Gerela kick) 28–7
• Pittsburgh – Harris 2 run (Gerela kick) 35–7
• Cincinnati – Curtis 1 pass from Anderson (Green kick) 35–14

Week 14 (Saturday December 20): Los Angeles Rams

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Steelers	3	0	0	0		3
Rams	0	3	0	7		10

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

• Game time:
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 69,389
• Referee: Tommy Bell
• TV announcers:

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 20 3–0
• Los Angeles – FG Dempsey 26 3–3
• Los Angeles – Jaworski 5 run (Dempsey kick) 3–10

Standings

AFC Central
Team	W	L	T	PCT	PF	PA
Pittsburgh Steelers	12	2	0	.857	373	162
Cincinnati Bengals	11	3	0	.786	340	246
Houston Oilers	10	4	0	.714	293	226
Cleveland Browns	3	11	0	.214	218	372

Postseason

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Game Site
Divisional	Saturday December 27	Baltimore	W 28–10	Three Rivers Stadium
Championship	Sunday January 4	Oakland	W 16–10	Three Rivers Stadium
Super Bowl X	Sunday January 18	Dallas	W 21–17	Miami Orange Bowl

Game summaries

AFC Divisional Playoff (Saturday December 27): vs. Baltimore Colts

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Colts	0	7	3	0		10
Steelers	7	0	7	14		28

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time: 12:30 PM EST
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 49,557
• Referee: Pat Haggerty
• TV announcers: (NBC)

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – Harris 8 run (Gerela kick) 7–0
• Baltimore – Doughty 5 pass from Domres (Linhart kick) 7–7
• Baltimore – FG Linhart 21 7–10
• Pittsburgh – Bleier 7 run (Gerela kick) 14–10
• Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 2 run (Gerela kick) 21–10
• Pittsburgh – Russell 93 fumble return (Gerela kick) 28–10
• Franco Harris gained 152 yds rushing, one yard less than the Baltimore Colts offense. Andy Russell set a record for elapsed time on a fumble return.

AFC Championship (Sunday January 4): vs. Oakland Raiders

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Raiders	0	0	0	10		10
Steelers	0	3	0	13		16

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• Game time: 12:30 PM EST
• Game weather: 16 degrees
• Game attendance: 50,609
• Referee: Ben Dreith
• TV announcers: (NBC) Curt Gowdy (play by play), Al DeRogatis & Don Meredith (color commentators)

Scoring Drives:

• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 36 3–0
• Pittsburgh – Harris 25 run (Gerela kick) 10–0
• Oakland – Siani 14 pass from Stabler (Blanda kick) 10–7
• Pittsburgh – Stallworth 20 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed) 16–7
• Oakland – FG Blanda 41 16–10

Pittsburgh won the game, despite giving up eight turnovers.

Super Bowl X (Sunday January 18): vs. Dallas Cowboys

Team	1	2	3	4		Total
Cowboys	7	3	0	7		17
Steelers	7	0	0	14		21

at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

• Game time: 2:00 PM EST
• Game weather:
• Game attendance: 80,187
• Referee: Norm Schachter
• TV announcers: (CBS) Pat Summerall (play by play), Tom Brookshier (color commentator)

Scoring Drives:

• Dallas – D. Pearson 29 pass from Staubach (Fritsch kick) 0–7
• Pittsburgh – Grossman 7 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) 7–7
• Dallas – FG Fritsch 36 7–10
• Pittsburgh – Safety, Harrison blocked punt through end zone 9–10
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 36 12–10
• Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 18 15–10
• Pittsburgh – Swann 64 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed) 21–10
• Dallas – P. Howard 34 pass from Staubach (Fritsch kick) 21–17 Lynn Swann earns MVP award catching 4 receptions for 161 yards.

The Pittsburgh Steelers won their 2nd of their 4 Super Bowl championships.

Awards, honors, and records

• Mel Blount, National Football League Defensive Player of the Year Award
• Lynn Swann, Super Bowl Most Valuable Player

External links

• 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season article at Wikipedia
• 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season at Profootballreference.com
• 1975 Pittsburgh Steelers season statistics at jt-sw.com