Alright, let’s get into this. Talking Steelers, huh? That franchise, man, it’s a rollercoaster. They’ve been doing this NFL dance for 92 spins around the sun, and here we are, prepping for number 93. There’s triumph, there’s heartbreak, and honestly, a ton of in-between stuff. I figured, why not kill some offseason time ranking every single one of those years? Sounds chaotic? It is. From the pits of misery to the top of the Super Bowl mountain – picking the best among those miracle-winning seasons is no joke. Spoiler: it’s tough.
Anyway, here’s the plan. We’re slicing this series into chunks – roughly 10 at a time, from absolute worst to… well, you get it. Oh, but no dice on those wartime merger years (1943 and ’44) with Philly and Chicago. Those seasons? Yeah, they’re like… in another realm. So, let’s rank the other 90.
We’ll talk about the basement-dwellers, those middle-of-the-road snoozefests, and then the ones where they somehow teetered on the .500 seesaw. Then… sparks of hope?
Steelers’ Season Rankings (No. 40-31)
40. The Train Wreck of 2018 (9-6-1)
Oh boy, kicking things off with a wild one. The end of the ‘Killer B’s’ era which – let’s be honest – was already on its way out. Antonio Brown walked off into the sunset after this season. The offense? Pretty spicy at sixth, but the defense? Total buzzkill at 16th.
We started by botching a 21-7 lead against Cleveland for a tie. Six turnovers, folks. A crazy start at 1-2-1, then came this six-game hot streak. Of course, we imploded again, even losing to the then-pretty-bad Raiders. Missed the Wild Card, courtesy of a Saints loss shrouded in penalties. Thanks, refs.
Ben Roethlisberger tossed the most yards, attempts, completions… and um, interceptions too. Brown and Smith-Schuster both hit over 1,200 yards. Chris Boswell’s season? Oof, shaky at best. The defense was sack-stoked but the secondary… yikes, only eight picks. The Pro Bowl cast was fab, just not quite enough.
Fun fact: Steel City notched 54 touchdowns that year. A franchise best!
39. The Rollercoaster of 1980 (9-7)
A third-place finish after starting 2-0, then slipping up. They were 4-1, then 4-4. The highlights? A 38-3 route of the Bears. Lowlights? That 6-0 Oilers loss and a crashland finale against the Chargers.
Terry Bradshaw served up 24 TDs and 22 picks. Franco Harris snapped a streak, just missing 1,000 yards. Theo Bell, his catch average was other-worldly, led the team. The defense? Well, not officially, but 18 sacks were said to be had. Somewhat ball-hawking secondary with Shell snatching seven.
Odd tidbit: Bradshaw did a few punts – like five. Kinda rare but hey, made it interesting.
38. The ‘Almost’ Year, 1962 (9-5)
Best record ever on this list, except no postseason glory. They started rocky but warmed up. Whatever you do, don’t mention the Lions or Browns to these guys.
John Henry Johnson? First 1,000-yard rusher. Bobby Layne had more picks than TDs but made things happen occasionally. Defensively stout, but minus-51 point differential. No playoff ticket, just three games back. Rough.
Interesting note: Nine wins didn’t happen again until… you do the math, it’s a long while!
37. The Quirky 1963 (7-4-3)
Can you believe three ties in a season? Pittsburgh had exactly that. Opened with a tie, got wins, then more ties – crazy day.
Offense loved scoring. Finding wins, though? Not so much, especially later on. QB Ed Brown’s 21 touchdowns battled with his 20 interceptions. Buddy Dial did impressively on receptions and yards yet again.
Clendon Thomas continued his pick-fest, ending strong. They’re okay-ish but fourth in the East.
Weird slice of history: Ernie Stautner, at 38, both played and coached the D-line. Multi-tasking genius.
36. The Misfit 2023 (10-7, Wild Card Oops)
A more recent tale. The Steelers rolled to mid-season on a positive note. Then came chaos with three quarterbacks. Found rhythm mixed with a blackout. Some snowy playoff attempts too.
The offense? Heavily punt-happy, 89 times, all thanks to coordinator Matt Canada. Mid-season dumping? A cult-like movement, honestly. QB touchdowns? Just a tragic 13 of those.
George Pickens did fine, T.J. Watt stayed fierce, but Cam Heyward? Sadly injury-bitten.
Rough tagline: Only three 17-plus point losses, a not-so-welcome return from 2003.
35. Not-Quite 2024 (10-7, Wild Card Oops)
Just last year, teeter-totter curses seemed endless. Enter Russell Wilson’s show before it was eventually crashed by injuries. Fields swapped in, defense shone early doors. But that late-season plummet… oof.
Wilson’s comeback seemed great, but that five-game losing horror? Unseen since… wow, the late 60s. Both sides let composure slip. Boswell might as well have been MVP.
Ran into Ravens like a brick wall – 299 rushing yards – playoff record written all over it.
Footnote: Ending four cold losses made the record books. Thanks, ‘86 Jets for the shared misery.
34. Strike of ’82 (6-3, Wild Card Ow)
Ah, the strike season – nine games were its total. Steelers got back on track well but dang, San Diego striked hard at playoffs. Could’ve won, they nearly did.
Stat-wise neat, offense in top 10, defense even brighter. Sacks became official… yay? Could’ve been so much more in a lengthier season.
Fun crew mention includes Stoudt’s infamous zero TD, five-pick stat. Not a rarity but barely.
33. Ride of 1993 (9-7, Wild Card Oops)
Pretty average road here, finishing barely above mediocrity. Two opening losses sucked, then things spiced with big wins over Atlanta and Cincinnati.
The Chiefs (Montana-led) shut that playoff door. Neil O’Donnell tossed three TDs – not enough.
Running game, tight end Green stood strong with Pro-Bowl nods. Kevin Greene’s first season added walls of sacks, Greg Lloyd did Lloyd-things, and Rod Woodson? DPOY crowned.
One-time tidbit: 18-week 16-game trial, double-bye experiment. NFL scrapped it fast.
32. Flashback to 1958 (7-4-1)
Sorta okay season after start blunders. That Browns opener stung – but November and December turned gold. The unfortunate opener lies a testament to it.
Butler sparkled with nine picks, a near-historic two-year run. And QB swapping was real, even Layne with Morrall’s name in the game.
Bizarre twist: Five-game winning streaks? Like unicorns back then (only twice happened). The ’70s dynasty had way more mojo.
31. Mike Tomlin’s Debut 2007 (10-6, Wild Card Oops)
Where new beginnings kindled through, post-Cowher days. Enter Tomlin’s time with a boom, three straight wins. Late-season sizzle fizzled, though.
Jacksonville Jaguars? Bane of postseason existence. I mean, Garrard and that sneaky show played heartstrings. Yet Roethlisberger’s performance hit Pro-Bowl heights.
Fascinating memory: Harrison’s epic game against the Ravens. Unforgettable 75th-year bash night. Speaking of 50-yard misses? Year one marked that absence, yet in 2024, they made 13 – go figure.
