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stillers4me
04-02-2011, 02:33 PM
Another in a series of stories chronicling the 52 playoff games in Steelers history.

At last, Noll’s offense catches up to his defense

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Through the magic of time it has come to be remembered as a smooth ride to a championship, and therefore the start of a smooth ride to greatness as well. But in fact, 1974 was a trying year for the Pittsburgh Steelers, a season pockmarked by injuries and a persistent quarterback controversy that could have divided the team and sabotaged the legacy they were just beginning to create.

The problems started with a players’ strike that upset the normalcy of training camp all across the NFL, and for the Steelers that meant veteran quarterbacks Terry Bradshaw and Terry Hanratty stayed away while third-year pro Joe Gilliam reported. Coming from Tennessee State and being third on the three-man depth chart at quarterback, Gilliam didn’t believe he had the status to miss any opportunity to impress Chuck Noll, and there is no argument that he was impressive that summer. Gilliam quarterbacked the Steelers to a 6-0 preseason record, and Noll’s decision on a starting quarterback for the regular season opener became simple when Bradshaw missed two weeks with an injury once the strike ended midway through training camp..............

Read more @
http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Steelers-begin-run-to-Super-Bowl-IX/b049dbcb-9174-4497-a6df-2b20db6baabb