The Pittsburgh Steelers team has already established itself as one of the elite teams of the NFL with the feat of earning six Super Bowl titles. In terms of the number of NFL titles won, they are currently in fourth place, behind the Green Bay Packers, the Chicago Bears, and the New England Giants.
“The Team of the 1970s” was put together by Art Rooney Sr., who was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 1965 in Canton, Ohio, in 1964. Today marks the 90th birthday of the franchise, and on this special day, let’s delve into a brief history of the Steelers along with a discussion regarding the backstory of the team’s name.
Art Rooney founded Pittsburgh Professional Football Club in 1933
The HOF purchased the Pittsburgh Professional Football Club, Inc back in 1933 for $2500. The team struggled to maintain its existence throughout the 1930s having only 24 victories over Rooney’s first eight years of ownership.
In addition, he founded the Hope-Harvey Majestics, a semi-professional football team. In the early 1930s, the team competed in the Western Pennsylvania Senior Independent Football Conference, where it won two championships.
After going winless for the first decade of the franchise’s existence, the Steelers finally broke through with a winning record in 1942 and never looked back. During the Chuck Noll Era (1969-91) the Steelers experienced their first breakthrough, as the team won 15 regular season games, nine division titles, made 12 playoff appearances, and won four Super Bowls.
Following his era, Bill Cowher also brought another Super Bowl title for Pittsburgh and continued his journey with the team till 2006. After starting his duty in 2007, Mike Tomlin led leads the team to two more Super Bowls. In 87 years of existence, Pittsburgh compiled a record of 631-552-21 and became a $3.4 billion worthy franchise.
How is the Steelers’ name introduced?
Back in the 90s, Major League Baseball was mostly loved by the Americans and it was widely considered the “National Pastime.” Hence, several Pro football teams were named after their baseball counterparts to gain the attention of sports fans.
The Steelers were no exception to the trend as its original nickname was the “Pirates,” Pittsburgh’s major league baseball team and the name lasted through the 1930s before Rooney decided to change the name. He held a “name the team” contest in the local Pittsburgh Post-Gazette newspaper to pick a new name for his team. The contest drew around 3,000 votes and 21 people proposed the name “Steelers”.
With a new NFL season approaching, fans are eagerly waiting to witness a stellar performance from the Steelers. How excited are you for the new season?
