1971 Pittsburgh Steelers season

1971 Pittsburgh Steelers season
Head coach Chuck Noll
Home field Three Rivers Stadium
Results
Record 6–8
Division place 2nd AFC Central
Playoff finish did not qualify
Pro Bowlers
AP All-Pros none
Team MVP Andy Russell

The 1971 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the team's 39th in the National Football League. The Steelers showed improvement finishing in second Place with a 6-8 record. But Terry Bradshaw struggled with turnovers in his second season throwing 22 interceptions to 13 touchdown passes. The Steelers that year drafted wide receiver Frank Lewis, Hall of Fame linebacker Jack Ham, guard Gerry Mullins, defensive end Dwight White, tight end/tackle Larry Brown, defensive tackle Ernie Holmes, and safety Mike Wagner. All key contributors during the Steelers Super Bowl teams of the 1970s.

Personnel

Staff

1971 Pittsburgh Steelers staff
Front office
  • President – Arthur J. Rooney
  • Vice President – John R. McGinley
  • Vice President – Daniel M. Rooney
  • Vice President – Arthur J. Rooney, Jr.
  • Public Relations Director – Ed Kiely
  • Ticket Manager – Joseph H. Carr
  • Traveling Secretary – James A. Boston
  • Publicity Director – Joe Gordon
  • Office Manager – Terrence Jacobs
  • Ticket Office Assistant – Arthur Laughlin
  • Director of Player Personnel – Dick Haley
  • Assistant Director of Player Personnel – Bill Nunn

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches
  • Defensive Line – Walter Hackett
  • Defensive Backfield – Charlie Sumner


Strength and conditioning

  • Strength Coach – Louis Riecke
  • Team Physician, Orthopedic – Dr. John Best
  • Team Physician, M.D. – Dr. David S. Huber
  • Team Dentist – Dr. Robert Gray
  • Trainer – Ralph Berlin
  • Equipment Manager – Anthony Parisi, Jack Hart

[1]

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result
1 September 19, 1971 at Chicago Bears L 17–15
2 September 26, 1971 Cincinnati Bengals W 21–10
3 October 3, 1971 San Diego Chargers W 21–17
4 October 10, 1971 at Cleveland Browns L 27–17
5 October 18, 1971 at Kansas City Chiefs L 38–16
6 October 24, 1971 Houston Oilers W 23–16
7 October 31, 1971 at Baltimore Colts L 34–21
8 November 7, 1971 Cleveland Browns W 26–9
9 November 14, 1971 at Miami Dolphins L 24–21
10 November 21, 1971 New York Giants W 17–13
11 November 28, 1971 Denver Broncos L 22–10
12 December 5, 1971 at Houston Oilers L 29–3
13 December 12, 1971 at Cincinnati Bengals W 21–13
14 December 19, 1971 Los Angeles Rams L 23–14

Game summaries

Week 1 (Sunday September 19, 1971): Chicago Bears

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 6 6 3 15
Bears 0 3 0 14 17

at Soldier Field, Chicago

Scoring Drives:

Week 2 (Sunday September 26, 1971): Cincinnati Bengals

1 2 3 4 Total
Bengals 3 0 7 0 10
Steelers 7 0 7 7 21

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 3 (Sunday October 3, 1971): San Diego Chargers

1 2 3 4 Total
Chargers 3 7 7 0 17
Steelers 7 0 7 7 21

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 4 (Sunday October 10, 1971): Cleveland Browns

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 7 3 7 17
Browns 10 10 0 7 27

at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

Scoring Drives:

Week 5 (Monday October 18, 1971): Kansas City Chiefs

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 9 0 0 7 16
Chiefs 0 28 0 10 38

at the Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Scoring Drives:

Week 6 (Sunday October 24, 1971): Houston Oilers

1 2 3 4 Total
Oilers 7 3 6 0 16
Steelers 3 3 3 14 23

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 7 (Sunday October 31, 1971): Baltimore Colts

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 7 7 7 21
Colts 7 20 7 0 34

at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland

Scoring Drives:

Week 8 (Sunday November 7, 1971): Cleveland Browns

1 2 3 4 Total
Browns 0 2 7 0 9
Steelers 10 6 0 10 26

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 9 (Sunday November 14, 1971): Miami Dolphins

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 14 7 0 0 21
Dolphins 3 14 7 0 24

at Miami Orange Bowl, Miami, Florida

Scoring Drives:

Week 10 (Sunday November 21, 1971): New York Giants

1 2 3 4 Total
Giants 7 6 0 0 13
Steelers 3 7 7 0 17

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 11 (Sunday November 28, 1971): Denver Broncos

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 0 10 0 12 22
Steelers 0 0 10 0 10

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Week 12 (Sunday December 5, 1971): Houston Oilers

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 3 0 0 3
Oilers 16 6 0 7 29

at the Houston Astrodome, Houston, Texas

Scoring Drives:

Week 13 (Sunday December 12, 1971): Cincinnati Bengals

1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 7 0 14 0 21
Bengals 0 7 6 0 13

at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati

Scoring Drives:

Week 14 (Sunday December 19, 1971): Los Angeles Rams

1 2 3 4 Total
Rams 13 3 7 0 23
Steelers 0 7 7 0 14

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring Drives:

Standings

AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Cleveland Browns 9 5 0 .643 5–1 7–4 285 273 W5
Pittsburgh Steelers 6 8 0 .429 4–2 5–6 246 292 L1
Houston Oilers 4 9 1 .308 2–4 4–7 251 330 W3
Cincinnati Bengals 4 10 0 .286 1–5 3–8 284 265 L3

Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

References

  1. 1971 Pittsburgh Steelers Preseason Prospectus.
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