Steelers Now
The 1970s will forever be remembered in NFL lore as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ decade. Under Chuck Noll’s stewardship, the black and gold collected four Super Bowl titles, repeating as league champions twice.
Noll made the Pro Football Hall of Fame. As did 10 of his players from that dominant stretch, including quarterback Terry Bradshaw and linebacker Jack Lambert. Another player immortalized in Canton, Cris Carter, believes that Steelers dynasty is the best the sport has ever seen.
“That team right there and the players — the collection of players that have gold jackets — it dominates anyone,” Carter said Monday on the “Fully Loaded” podcast. “Now listen, I played 16 years with nine Hall of Famers. That includes Reggie White in Philly, we’ve got Warren Moon, Roger Craig — I played a year with him when he came over from San Francisco. … So, to me, New England, it’s two batches. They won three and three. So people try to put them together, but it’s totally different (with) free agency.”
The Steelers had only made one playoff appearance before the 1970s. Franco Harris‘ “Immaculate Reception” in a 13-7 1972 AFC Divisional win kicked off Pittsburgh’s postseason success, though the Steelers didn’t make it to a Super Bowl until the 1974 go-round.
“The way the Steelers drafted, the way they developed their players and everything … how they did it and who they did it with, to me, supersedes any of the other stories,” Carter said.
The San Francisco 49ers were the NFL’s team of the 1980s, winning the Lombardi Trophy three times. The Dallas Cowboys did the same in the 1990s. The Patriots, with Bill Belichick and Tom Brady, won six Super Bowl crowns over the 2000s and 2010s.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Hall of Fame WR Weighs In on Steelers 1970s Dynasty: ‘It Dominates Anyone’
