When discussing the best NFL team of all time, there are only a few valid contenders who can legitimately lay claim to the title. The franchises who have won multiple championships have earned a right to make a case, although most cities who have ever won even a single championship will argue the point. The immediate teams that come to mind are the Dallas Cowboys, the Green Bay Packers, the San Francisco 49er’s, the New England Patriots and the Pittsburgh Steelers. After long deliberation, the all time best NFL team is the 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers.
To begin with, Professional Football in the 1970’s was a different game than that of today, and for that reason alone recent teams can be discounted as being the greatest of all time. Back then, steroids were not an issue, whatever skills players had came naturally without the aid of chemistry. Additionally, players played hurt – it was expected of them and it separated the men from the boys, so to speak. The game of football was much rougher – penalties for roughness were minimal, and quarterbacks were fair game and unprotected by the league rules. While the area of sports medicine was in it’s infancy, recuperative time after an injury was extended, and many of the injuries that can be surgically repaired today were career enders back then.
Having said all of that, the 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers were the best team ever. That season they went 12-4 in the regular season and 3-0 in the playoffs, winning the Super Bowl over the Los Angeles Rams. In the regular season, Pittsburgh averaged nearly 30 points a game on offense and gave up about 12.7 points on defense. Let that statistic sink in for a minute. An average game in 1979 the Pittsburgh Steelers won by about 17 points. In three playoff games against better competition, Pittsburgh outscored their opponents 92-46, averaging over 30 points a game.
This was the time when the Pittsburgh Steelers were in the midst of creating a football dynasty, and they had the players and coach to win against anyone. Five Pittsburgh Steeler offensive players from this team were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame – Terry Bradshaw, Franco Harris, Mike Webster, Lynn Swann and John Stallworth. On defense, 4 players are in "The Hall" – Joe Greene, Mel Blount, Jack Lambert and Jack Ham. So in all, 9 of the starting 22 players are among the best ever. Oh, by the way, they also had a Hall of Fame Head Coach, Chuck Noll. Also, had Hall of Fame ownership in Art and Dan Rooney. Let the debate begin!
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