2007 Recap

The Pittsburgh Steelers finished the 2007 season with a 10-6 record and a loss to Jacksonville in the wild card game. The team showed great balance, averaging 24.5 points a game and allowing 16.8. The Steelers were led by a strong running game featuring a 1,316 yard season for RB Willie Parker and a complimentary passing game with QB Ben Roethlisberger earning an amazing 104.1 QB rating while throwing for 32 touchdowns and only 11 interceptions.

The Steelers are looking to draft numerous offensive linemen in the 2008 draft, having most of the other positions on the team already filled. Center Justin Hartwig was signed through free agency to anchor a line that allowed Roethlisberger to be sacked 47 times last season.

Team History

The Pittsburgh Steelers, the fifth oldest franchise in the NFL, joined the league in 1933. The early years found the team making the playoffs only once in 25 years, but after the merger with the AFL in 1970 the team found greater success. The team switched to the AFC and formed one of the few dynasties in the 1970s. The “Steel Curtain” won four Super Bowls in six years and was led by head coach Chuck Noll, QB Terry Bradshaw, DT “Mean” Joe Greene, RB Franco Harris, and WR Lynn Swann.

The 1980s found the franchise competitive but not terribly successful, failing to finish with a winning record for three years in the 1985, 1986, and 1988. A coaching change brought Bill Cowher to town and he coached the franchise into the playoffs in 10 of 15 seasons, winning the Super Bowl in 2006.