1976 Pittsburgh Steelers season

1976 Pittsburgh Steelers season
1976 Pittsburgh Steelers season
Owner	AFC Central
Playoff finish	Won Divisional Playoffs; (at Colts) 40–14; Lost AFC Championship; (at Raiders) 7–24
Pro Bowlers	12 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; CB J.T. Thomas;
AP All-Pros	5 Jack Ham (1st team); Jack Lambert (1st team); Glen Edwards (2nd team); Joe Greene (2nd team); Mike Wagner (2nd team);
Team MVP	Jack Lambert
	← 1975; Steelers seasons; 1977 →;

The 1976 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the team's 44th in the

rivals, the Oakland Raiders

, in the AFC Championship Game. Despite failing to reach the Super Bowl, the 1976 Steelers are fondly remembered as one of the franchise's most dominant teams, thanks to a record-setting defense and running game. The Steelers' strong defense finished the season with just 9.9 points allowed per game, the fewest in the NFL, and a franchise record that still stands.

Season Summary

The Steelers started the season looking to become the first team in the

Browns-Steelers rivalry

.

Despite the setbacks, behind the strength of the

rushing for over 1,000 yards, the Steelers became the second team in NFL history to have a 1,000 yard rushing duo (the first being the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins

, the 1976 Steelers and the 1972 Dolphins are the only teams to accomplish this in a 14-game schedule).

Meanwhile, led by linebacker Jack Lambert, the 1976 Defensive Player of the Year, the Steel Curtain had its most dominant season. The defense posted five shutouts, the most in a single season in the Super Bowl era; all five shutouts came during the team's nine-game winning streak. This included three consecutive shutouts (from Weeks 7-9), a 15-quarter shutout streak, and five consecutive games where the team did not allow a touchdown (Weeks 6-10). During the winning streak, the team did not allow a touchdown in eight games. Overall, the defense allowed just 138 points (including only 28 during the winning streak), forced 46 turnovers, and sent eight starting defensive players to the Pro Bowl, including the entire starting secondary.

Rookie quarterback Mike Kruczek wound up going 6–0 starting in place of Bradshaw, largely due to the strength of the ground game and defense. This would also stand as an NFL record for best start for a rookie quarterback until 2004—when the Steelers' own Ben Roethlisberger more than doubled that record and went 13–0 as a starter his rookie season.

However, injuries to both Bleier and Harris in the AFC Divisional Playoff game against the Baltimore Colts sidelined them both for the following week's AFC Championship game against the Oakland Raiders. Without both of their 1,000-yard rushers, the Steelers lost to the Raiders by a score of 24–7. Even with Pittsburgh coming up short, many Steelers fans—including the Rooney family themselves—consider the 1976 Steelers the best team in franchise history, even better than all six world championship teams.^{[citation needed]} Jack Lambert, who won 4 Super Bowls with the Steelers between 1974 and 1979, claimed that the 1976 Steelers team was the best team that he ever played for, and subsequently, the loss to the Raiders in the AFC Championship game was the most painful loss of his career. He (Lambert) is convinced that they would have beaten the Raiders and gone on to win that season's Super Bowl had Harris and Bleier both been healthy and available for said AFC Championship game. Despite their opinions, the 1976 Steelers were not on the 100 greatest teams of all time presented by the NFL on its 100th anniversary.^[1]^[2]

In 2007,

Mean Joe Greene, Jack Lambert, Jack Ham and Mel Blount. And eight Steelers defensive players made the 1976 Pro Bowl team: cornerback J.T. Thomas, defensive end L. C. Greenwood, Greene, Ham, Lambert, defensive back Glen Edwards, safety Mike Wagner

, and Blount."

Personnel

Staff

**1976 Pittsburgh Steelers 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 — 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 Offensive assistant — John Spezzaferro Receivers — Lionel Taylor			Defensive coaches Defensive coordinator — Bud Carson Defensive line — George Perles Linebackers — Woody Widenhofer Strength and conditioning Strength — Louis Riecke Flexibility — Paul Uram Team Physician, M.D. — Dr. David S. Huber Team physician, orthopedic — Dr. Paul B. Steele, Jr. 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 ^[4]

Roster

**1976 Pittsburgh Steelers final roster**

	Quarterbacks 12 Terry Bradshaw 15 Mike Kruczek Running backs 20 Rocky Bleier 35 Jack Deloplaine 33 John Fuqua 32 Franco Harris 46 Reggie Harrison Wide receivers 83 Theo Bell PR 43 Frank Lewis 22 Ernie Pough KR 82 John Stallworth 88 Lynn Swann Tight ends 87 Larry Brown 89 Bennie Cunningham 84 Randy Grossman		Offensive linemen 50 Jim Clack G/C 57 Sam Davis G 71 Gordon Gravelle T 55 Jon Kolb T 56 Ray Mansfield C 72 Gerry Mullins G/T 74 Ray Pinney C/T 52 Mike Webster C Defensive linemen 76 John Banaszak DE 67 Gary Dunn DT 64 Steve Furness DT 75 Joe Greene DT 68 L. C. Greenwood DE 63 Ernie Holmes DT 78 Dwight White DE		Linebackers 53 Greg Blankenship OLB 59 Jack Ham OLB 54 Marv Kellum MLB 58 Jack Lambert MLB 34 Andy Russell OLB 51 Loren Toews OLB Defensive backs 45 Jimmy Allen DB 47 Mel Blount CB 27 Glen Edwards FS 31 Donnie Shell S 24 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 44 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 73 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 36 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 86 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 11 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 66 IRTooltip Injured reserve) 29 IRTooltip Injured reserve) Practice squad 16 Neil Graff QB ^[5] ^[6] ^[7] Rookies in italics 44 active, 7 inactive, 1 practice squad

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Time _(ET)	TV
1	September 12	at Oakland Raiders	L 28–31	0–1	4:00 pm	NBC
2	September 19	Cleveland Browns	W 31–14	1–1	1:00 pm	NBC
3	September 26	New England Patriots	L 27–30	1–2	1:00 pm	NBC
4	October 4	at Minnesota Vikings	L 6–17	1–3	9:00 pm	ABC
5	October 10	at Cleveland Browns	L 16–18	1–4	1:00 pm	NBC
6	October 17	Cincinnati Bengals	W 23–6	2–4	1:00 pm	NBC
7	October 24	at New York Giants	W 27–0	3–4	1:00 pm	NBC
8	October 31	San Diego Chargers	W 23–0	4–4	1:00 pm	NBC
9	November 7	at Kansas City Chiefs	W 45–0	5–4	2:00 pm	NBC
10	November 14	Miami Dolphins	W 14–3	6–4	4:00 pm	NBC
11	November 21	Houston Oilers	W 32–16	7–4	1:00 pm	NBC
12	November 28	at Cincinnati Bengals	W 7–3	8–4	1:00 pm	NBC
13	December 5	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 42–0	9–4	1:00 pm	NBC
14	December 11	at Houston Oilers	W 21–0	10–4	4:00 pm	NBC
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: at Oakland Raiders

Week One: Pittsburgh Steelers (0–0) at Oakland Raiders (0–0)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	0	7	7	14	28
Raiders	7	0	0	24	31

at

Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California

Date: September 12, 1976

Game time: 4:00 pm EDT

Game weather: 62 °F or 16.7 °C, wind 8 miles per hour (13 km/h; 7.0 kn)

Game attendance: 51,371

Referee:
Jim Tunney
TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy & Don Meredith

Game information

First quarter

No Scoring Plays

Second quarter

OAK — Casper 30-yard pass from Stabler (Steinfort kick). Raiders 7–0
PIT — Bleier 2-yard-yard run (Gerela kick). 7–7

Third quarter

PIT — Stallworth 47-yard lateral from Harris after 25-yard run (Gerela kick). Steelers 14–7

Fourth quarter

PIT — Bell 11-yard pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick). Steelers 21–7
OAK — Biletnikoff 21-yard pass from Stabler (Steinfort kick). Steelers 21–14
PIT — Harris 3-yard-yard run (Gerela kick). Steelers 28–14
OAK — Casper 10-yard pass from Stabler (Steinfort kick). Steelers 28–21
OAK — Stabler 2-yard-yard run (Steinfort kick). 28–28
OAK — Steinfort 21-yard field goal. Raiders 31–28

Additional Notes

The game was cited by the Sacramento Bee as one of the "great games of the past" and was described as a shootout.^[8]

Week 2: vs. Cleveland Browns

Week Two: Cleveland Browns (1–0) at Pittsburgh Steelers (0–1)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Browns	0	14	0	0	14
Steelers	0	0	17	14	31

at

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Date: Sunday, September 19, 1976

Game time: 1:00 pm EDT

Game weather: 63 °F or 17.2 °C, wind 9 miles per hour (14 km/h; 7.8 kn)

Game attendance: 49,169

Referee: Tommy Bell
TV announcers (NBC): Jack Buck & Paul Maguire

Game information

First quarter

No scoring plays

Second quarter

CLE — Rucker 14-yard pass from Sipe (Cockroft kick). Browns 7–0
CLE — Roan 17-yard pass from Sipe (Cockroft kick). Browns 14–0

Third quarter

PIT — Stallworth 14-yard pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick). Browns 14–7
PIT — Gerela 47-yard field goal. Browns 14–10
PIT — Harris 2-yard run (Gerela kick). Steelers 17–14
PIT — Stallworth 5-yard pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick). Steelers 24–14
PIT — Bradshaw 7-yard run (Gerela kick). Steelers 31–14

Week 3: vs. New England Patriots

Week Three: New England Patriots (1–1) at Pittsburgh Steelers (1–1)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Patriots	6	3	14	7	30
Steelers	7	6	7	7	27

at

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Date: Sunday, September 26, 1976
Game time: 1:00 pm EDT
Game weather: 56 °F or 13.3 °C, wind 8 miles per hour (13 km/h; 7.0 kn)
Game attendance: 47,379
Referee: Dick Jorgensen
TV: NBC

Game information

First quarter

PIT — Harris 3-yard run (Gerela kick). Steelers 7–0
NWE — Smith 42-yard field goal. Steelers 7–3
NWE — Smith 40-yard field goal. Steelers 7–6

Second quarter

PIT — Gerela 32-yard field goal. Steelers 10–6
NWE — Smith 26-yard field goal. Steelers 10–9
PIT — Gerela 41-yard field goal. Steelers 13–9

Third quarter

PIT — Harris 2-yard run (Gerela kick). Steelers 20–9
NWE — Francis 38-yard pass from Grogan (Smith kick). Steelers 20–16
NWE — Stingley 58-yard pass from Grogan (Smith kick). Patriots 23–20

Fourth quarter

NWE — Grogan 6-yard run (Smith kick). Patriots 30–20
PIT — Grossman 11-yard pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick). Patriots 30–27

Week 4: at Minnesota Vikings

Week Four: Pittsburgh Steelers (1–2) at Minnesota Vikings (2–0–1)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	6	0	0	0	6
Vikings	0	7	0	10	17

at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota

Date: Monday, October 4, 1976
Game time: 9:00 pm EDT
Game weather: 65 °F or 18.3 °C, wind 13 miles per hour (21 km/h; 11 kn)
Game attendance: 47,809
Referee: Pat Haggerty
TV announcers (ABC): Frank Gifford (play by play)
Alex Karras and Howard Cosell (color commentators)

Game information

First quarter

PIT — Cunningham 1-yard pass from Bradshaw (kick blocked). Steelers 6–0

Second quarter

MIN — Foreman 8-yard run (Cox kick). Vikings 7–6

Fourth quarter

MIN — Foreman 4-yard run (Cox kick). Vikings 14–6
MIN — Cox 43-yard field goal. Vikings 17–6

Week 5: at Cleveland Browns

Week Five: Pittsburgh Steelers (1–3) at Cleveland Browns (1–3)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	7	3	0	6	16
Browns	3	3	9	3	18

at

Cleveland, Ohio

Date: Sunday, October 10, 1976
Game time: 1:00 p.m.
EST
Game weather: 48 °F or 8.9 °C, wind 13 miles per hour (21 km/h; 11 kn)
Game attendance: 76,411
Referee: Bernie Ulman
TV: NBC
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

First quarter

CLE — Don Cockroft 43-yard field goal. Browns 3–0
PIT — Franco Harris 1-yard-yard run (Roy Gerela kick). Steelers 7–3

Second quarter

CLE — Don Cockroft 28-yard field goal .Steelers 7–6
PIT — Roy Gerela 30-yard field goal. Steelers 10–6

Third quarter

CLE — Cleo Miller 1-yard-yard run (kick failed) .Browns 12–10
CLE — Don Cockroft 50-yard field goal. Browns 15–10

Fourth quarter

CLE — Don Cockroft 40-yard field goal. Browns 18–10
PIT — Mike Kruczek 22-yard-yard run (kick blocked). Browns 18–16

Top-yard passers

PIT — Terry Bradshaw — 10/18, 75 yards, INT
CLE — Brian Sipe — 4/14, 80 yards

Top rushers

PIT — Franco Harris — 13 rushes, 39 yards, TD
CLE — Greg Pruitt — 22 rushes, 76 yards

Top receivers

PIT — Lynn Swann — 3 receptions, 74 yards
CLE — Reggie Rucker — 3 receptions, 77 yards

[1]

[2]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

AFC Central
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Pittsburgh Steelers⁽³⁾	10	4	0	.714	5–1	9–3	342	138	W9
Cincinnati Bengals	10	4	0	.714	4–2	8–4	335	210	W1
Cleveland Browns	9	5	0	.643	3–3	7–5	267	287	L1
Houston Oilers	5	9	0	.357	0–6	3–9	222	273	L2

Round	Date	Opponent (seed)	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
Divisional	December 19	at Baltimore Colts (2)	W 40–14	1–0	Memorial Stadium	59,296
AFC Championship	December 26	at Oakland Raiders (1)	L 7–24	1–1	Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum	53,821

v t e Pittsburgh Steelers seasons
Formerly the Pittsburgh Pirates (1933–1939)
1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Bold indicates Super Bowl victory Italics indicates Super Bowl appearance

v t e Pittsburgh Steelers
Founded in 1933 Formerly the Pittsburgh Pirates (1933–1939) Based and headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Franchise	History All-Time Team Seasons Logos and uniforms Coaches Players Starting quarterbacks First-round draft picks Records
Stadiums	Home fields: Forbes Field Pitt Stadium Three Rivers Stadium Acrisure Stadium Training facilities: Rooney Field Point Stadium UPMC Rooney Sports Complex Chuck Noll Field
Culture	Football in Western Pennsylvania Rooney family Myron Cope Steelmark Steeler Nation Terrible Towel Steel Curtain Black Sunday Fighting Back: The Rocky Bleier Story Evening Shade The Chief "Renegade" "Here We Go" "Black and Yellow" YinzCam This Is Us Steel Curtain Roller Coaster
Lore	Steelers lore J.P. Rooneys Pennsylvania Keystoners "Pennsylvania Polka" Steagles Card-Pitt Steelerettes Immaculate Reception 1995 AFC Championship Game Jerome Bettis trade Immaculate Redemption/The Tackle 3:16 game
Rivalries	Baltimore Ravens Cincinnati Bengals Cleveland Browns Dallas Cowboys Denver Broncos Las Vegas Raiders New England Patriots Philadelphia Eagles Tennessee Titans
Media	Broadcasters KDKA-TV WPKD-TV AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh Charlie Batch Chris Hoke Bob Pompeani Radio Network WDVE-FM WBGG-AM Bill Hillgrove Tunch Ilkin Craig Wolfley Steelers figures in broadcasting
Division championships (24)	1972 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1983 1984 1992 1994 1995 1996 1997 2001 2002 2004 2007 2008 2010 2014 2016 2017 2020
Conference championships (8)	1974 1975 1978 1979 1995 2005 2008 2010
League championships (6)	1974 (IX) 1975 (X) 1978 (XIII) 1979 (XIV) 2005 (XL) 2008 (XLIII)
Retired numbers	32 70 75
Hall of Fame members	Players: Bettis Blount Bradshaw Butler Dawson Dudley Faneca Greene Ham Harris Johnson Lambert Layne Polamalu Shell Stallworth Stautner Swann Webster Woodson Coaches and administration: Bell Cowher Kiesling Noll Art Rooney Dan Rooney
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League Conference: American Football Conference Division: North Division

1976 Pittsburgh Steelers season

Season Summary

Personnel

Staff

Roster

Regular season

Schedule

Game summaries

Week 1: at Oakland Raiders

Week 2: vs. Cleveland Browns

Week 3: vs. New England Patriots

Week 4: at Minnesota Vikings

Week 5: at Cleveland Browns

Week 6: vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Week 7: at New York Giants

Week 8: vs. San Diego Chargers

Week 9: at Kansas City Chiefs

Week 10: vs. Miami Dolphins

Week 11: vs. Houston Oilers

Week 12: at Cincinnati Bengals

Week 13: vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Week 14: at Houston Oilers

Standings

Postseason

Schedule

Game summaries

AFC Divisional Playoffs: at (2) Baltimore Colts

AFC Championship: at (1) Oakland Raiders

References

External links