Trisha Shetty (Editor)

1972 Pittsburgh Steelers season

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Record
  
11–3

Head coach
  
Chuck Noll

Owner
  
Art Rooney

Team MVP
  
Franco Harris

Division place
  
1st AFC Central

Start date
  
1972

Home field
  
Three Rivers Stadium

1972 Pittsburgh Steelers season wwwcollectorsworldusprodImagesfootball1972ste

Playoff finish
  
Won Divisional Playoffs (Raiders) 13–7 Lost AFC Championship (Dolphins) 21–17

Pro Bowlers
  
6 LB Henry Davis PK Roy Gerela DT Joe Greene RB Franco Harris LB Andy Russell DE Dwight White

AP All-Pros
  
4 Joe Greene (1st team) Roy Gerela (2nd team) Franco Harris (2nd team) Andy Russell (2nd team)

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The 1972 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the team's 40th in the National Football League.

Contents

The team posted a record of 11–3 in 1972, and won their first-ever AFC Central Division title. It was the team's third-ever postseason appearance, its first postseason appearance in ten seasons (the Playoff Bowl for third place in the league), and only its second playoff game since 1947. This season is famous for the Immaculate Reception, where the Steelers beat the Oakland Raiders in the playoffs 13-7 on a last second touchdown by Franco Harris.

The rebuilding of the franchise that began in 1969 with the hiring of Chuck Noll finally came to fruition in his fourth year. After winning only one game in his first year in 1969 the team that showed steady improvement broke through in 1972 and made the playoffs for the first time since 1947. The division title was the first in team history, as was the appearance in the AFC Championship game which they lost to the undefeated Miami Dolphins 21-17. It was the first of 8 straight playoff appearances for the Steelers that led to 4 Super Bowl Championships.

Week 1: vs. Oakland Raiders

The Steelers were able to start off against the Raiders at home scoring 17 unanswered points (2TDs/PATs and a FG) and eventually ended up defeating the team by 6 for a 34–28 victory and a 1–0 start.

Week 9: Kansas City Chiefs

Scoring Drives:

  • Kansas City – Kearney 65 interception return (Stenerud kick) – Chiefs 7–0
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 25 – Chiefs 7–3
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 10 – Chiefs 7–6
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 49 – Steelers 9–7
  • Pittsburgh – Harris 7 run (Gerela kick) – Steelers 16–7

    • Week 10: Cleveland Browns

    Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 39 – Steelers 3–0
  • Cleveland – FG Cockroft 26 – Tie 3–3
  • Cleveland – Phipps 1 run (Cockroft kick) – Browns 10–3
  • Cleveland – FG Cockroft 38 – Browns 13–3
  • Cleveland – Pitts 17 pass from Phipps (Cockroft kick) – Browns 20–3
  • Pittsburgh – Mullins 3 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) – Browns 20–10
  • Cleveland – FG Cockroft 12 – Browns 23–10
  • Pittsburgh – Fuqua 1 run (Gerela kick) – Browns 23–17
  • Pittsburgh – Harris 75 run (Gerela kick)- Steelers 24–23
  • Cleveland – FG Cockroft 26 – Browns 26–24

    • Week 11: Minnesota Vikings

    Scoring Drives:

  • Minnesota – FG Cox 24 – Vikings 3–0
  • Pittsburgh – Harris 12 run (Gerela kick) – Steelers 7–3
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 17 – Steelers 10–3
  • Minnesota – Voigt 5 pass from Tarkenton (Cox kick) – Tie 10–10
  • Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 1 run (kick blocked) – Steelers 16–10
  • Pittsburgh – Lewis 17 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) – Steelers 23–10

    • Week 12: Cleveland Browns

    Franco Harris breaks Jim Brown's record for consecutive 100 yd games.

    Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 19 – Steelers 3–0
  • Pittsburgh – Harris 1 run (Gerela kick) – Steelers 10–0
  • Pittsburgh – Harris 11 run (Gerela kick) – Steelers 17–0
  • Pittsburgh – McMakin 78 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) – Steelers 24–0
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 44 – Steelers 27–0
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 37 – Steelers 30–0

    • Week 13: Houston Oilers

    Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 24 – Steelers 3–0
  • Houston – FG Butler 34 – Tie 3–3
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 39 – Steelers 6–3
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 13 – Steelers 9–3

    • Steelers clinch their 1st playoff berth.

    Week 14: San Diego Chargers

    The Pittsburgh Steelers clinched their first AFC Central Division title (the day before the game Frank Sinatra is inducted into Franco's Italian Army).

    Scoring Drives:

  • Pittsburgh- ((Franco Harris)) 7 yd run ((Roy Gerela)) (kick) Steelers 7-0
  • San Diego – Safety, Costa tackled Bradshaw in end zone – Steelers 7-2
  • Pittsburgh – Fuqua 2 run (Roy Gerela (kick) – Steelers 14–2
  • Pittsburgh – FG Gerela 24 – Steelers 17–2
  • Pittsburgh – Shanklin 17 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) – Steelers 24–2

    • AFC Championship: vs. Miami Dolphins

  • PIT – Mullins recovered fumble in end zone (Gerela kick) PIT 7–0
  • MIA – Csonka 9 pass from Morrall (Yepremian kick) 7–7
  • PIT – FG Gerela 14 PIT 10–7
  • MIA – Kiick 2 run (Yepremian kick) MIA 14–10
  • MIA – Kiick 3 run (Yepremian kick) MIA 21–10
  • PIT – Young 12 pass from Bradshaw (Gerela kick) MIA 21–17

    • References

    1972 Pittsburgh Steelers season Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA


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