1980 Pittsburgh Steelers season
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1980 Pittsburgh Steelers season
| 1980 Pittsburgh Steelers season | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Head coach | Chuck Noll | ||||||
| Home field | Three Rivers Stadium | ||||||
| Results | |||||||
| Record | 9–7 | ||||||
| Division Place | 3rd in AFC Central | ||||||
| Playoff finish | did not qualify | ||||||
| Pro Bowlers |
5
|
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| AP All-Pros |
3
|
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| Team MVP | Donnie Shell | ||||||
| Timeline | |||||||
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The 1980 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 48th season in the National Football League.
In 1980, the Steelers struggled for the first time in many years. The aging defense wasn't as effective as it had been in the 1978 and '79 seasons, falling from 2nd to 15th in yards allowed. The Steelers also surrendered 313 points, ranked 15th in the league, compared to 262 points (5th in the league) the previous season. The Pittsburgh defense only garnered 18 quarterback sacks.
The offense was still plagued with 42 total turnovers, 42 total,[1] but ranking 6th in total offense, and scoring 352 points.[2]
Despite the team's troubles, the Steelers could have again obtained home field advantage throughout the playoffs had they not lost several close games, including games against Cincinnati and Cleveland in which they lost despite having large leads in the fourth quarter. Pittsburgh remained in the playoff hunt until a 28-13 loss to Buffalo in week 12 and then a 6-0 loss to Houston effectively eliminated Pittsburgh from the postseason.
To many, these two losses marked the end of the Steeler Dynasty. Several key players retired after the 1980 season and the team was never the same again. The 1980 season was the first in which the Steelers did not qualify for the playoffs since 1971.
Offseason
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Regular season
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Location | Time (ET) | TV | Result | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sunday September 7 | Houston Oilers | Three Rivers Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | W 31–17 | 1–0 |
| 2 | Sunday September 14 | Baltimore Colts | Memorial Stadium | 2:00 pm | NBC | W 20–17 | 2–0 |
| 3 | Sunday September 21 | Cincinnati Bengals | Riverfront Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | L 30–28 | 2–1 |
| 4 | Sunday September 28 | Chicago Bears | Three Rivers Stadium | 1:00 pm | CBS | W 38–3 | 3–1 |
| 5 | Sunday October 5 | Minnesota Vikings | Metropolitan Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | W 23–17 | 4–1 |
| 6 | Sunday October 12 | Cincinnati Bengals | Three Rivers Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | L 17–16 | 4–2 |
| 7 | Monday October 20 | Oakland Raiders | Three Rivers Stadium | 9:00 pm | ABC | L 45–34 | 4–3 |
| 8 | Sunday October 26 | Cleveland Browns | Cleveland Municipal Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | L 27–26 | 4–4 |
| 9 | Sunday November 2 | Green Bay Packers | Three Rivers Stadium | 1:00 pm | CBS | W 22–20 | 5–4 |
| 10 | Sunday November 9 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | Tampa Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | W 24–21 | 6–4 |
| 11 | Sunday November 16 | Cleveland Browns | Three Rivers Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | W 16–13 | 7–4 |
| 12 | Sunday November 23 | Buffalo Bills | Rich Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | L 28–13 | 7–5 |
| 13 | Sunday November 30 | Miami Dolphins | Three Rivers Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | W 23–10 | 8–5 |
| 14 | Thursday December 4 | Houston Oilers | Astrodome | 8:30 pm | ABC | L 0–6 | 8–6 |
| 15 | Sunday December 14 | Kansas City Chiefs | Three Rivers Stadium | 1:00 pm | NBC | W 21–16 | 9–6 |
| 16 | Monday December 22 | San Diego Chargers | San Diego Stadium | 9:00 pm | ABC | L 26–17 | 9–7 |
Game summaries
Week 1 (Sunday September 7, 1980): vs. Houston Oilers
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oilers | 0 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 17 |
| Steelers | 17 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 31 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 1:00 pm EDT
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 54,386
- Referee: Dick Jorgensen
- TV announcers: (NBC) Dick Enberg (play by play), Merlin Olsen (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Thornton 29 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Harris 1 run (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 27
- Houston – FG Fritsch 31
- Houston – Johnson 57 pass from Campbell (Fritsch kick)
- Houston – Campbell 1 run (Fritsch kick)
- Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 1 run (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Stallworth 50 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
Week 2 (Sunday September 14, 1980): at Baltimore Colts
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 3 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
| Colts | 0 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 17 |
at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland
- Game time: 2:00 pm EDT
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 54,914
- Referee: Ben Dreith
- TV announcers: Charlie Jones (play by play), Len Dawson (color commentaor)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 25
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 29
- Baltimore – Shiver 34 interception return (Mike-Mayer kick)
- Pittsburgh – Harris 10 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Baltimore – Butler 15 pass from Jones (Mike-Mayer kick)
- Baltimore – FG Mike-Mayer 20
- Pittsburgh – Smith 24 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
Week 3 (Sunday September 21, 1980): at Cincinnati Bengals
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 0 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Bengals | 10 | 3 | 0 | 17 | 30 |
at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio
- Game time: 1:00 pm EDT
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 52,490
- Referee: Red Cashion
- TV announcers: (NBC) Don Criqui (play by play), John Brodie (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Cincinnati – R. Griffin 28 interception return (Sunter kick)
- Cincinnati – FG Sunter 27
- Pittsburgh – Smith 45 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Swann 14 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Cincinnati – FG Sunter 42
- Pittsburgh – Swann 68 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Cincinnati – Curtis 18 pass from Thompson (Sunter kick)
- Pittsburgh – Hawthorne 4 run (Bahr kick)
- Cincinnati – Bass 22 pass from Thompson
- Cincinnati – FG Sunter 21
Week 4 (Sunday September 28, 1980): vs. Chicago Bears
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bears | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Steelers | 7 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 38 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 1:00 pm EDT
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 53,987
- Referee: Jerry Seeman
- TV announcers: (CBS) Frank Glieber (play by play), Roger Staubach (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Chicago – FG Thomas 28
- Pittsburgh – Smith 21 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 20
- Pittsburgh – Smith 29 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Smith 23 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Cunningham 2 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Harris 9 pass from Stoudt (Bahr kick)
Week 5 (Sunday October 5, 1980): at Minnesota Vikings
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 6 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 23 |
| Vikings | 3 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 17 |
at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota
- Game time: 1:00 pm EDT
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 47,583
- Referee: Cal Lepore
- TV announcers: (NBC) Dick Enberg (play by play), Merlin Olsen (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Sweeney 21 pass from Bradshaw (kick failed)
- Minnesota – FG Danmeier 35
- Pittsburgh – Harris 4 run (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 28
- Pittsburgh – Bradshaw 2 run (Bahr kick)
- Minnesota – S. White 21 pass from Kramer (Danmeier kick)
- Minnesota – Kramer 4 run (Danmeier kick)
Week 6 (Sunday October 12, 1980): vs. Cincinnati Bengals
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bengals | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Steelers | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 16 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 1:00 pm EDT
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 53,668
- Referee: Fred Silva
- TV announcers: (NBC) Sam Nover (play by play), Bob Trumpy (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Cincinnati – Alexander 1 run (Sunter kick)
- Cincinnati – FG Sunter 24
- Cincinnati – Johnson 28 pass from Anderson (Sunter kick)
- Pittsburgh – Davis 1 run (kick blocked)
- Pittsburgh – Smith 13 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 35
Week 7 (Monday October 20, 1980): vs. Oakland Raiders
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Raiders | 7 | 21 | 7 | 10 | 45 |
| Steelers | 10 | 14 | 10 | 0 | 34 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 9:00 pm EDT
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 53,940
- Referee: Pat Haggerty
- TV announcers: (ABC) Frank Gifford (play by play), Don Meredith & Howard Cosell (color commentators)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Smith 19 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 18
- Oakland – King 27 run (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Hawthorne 1 run (Bahr kick)
- Oakland – van Eeghen 1 run (Bahr kick)
- Oakland – Martin 34 fumble return (Bahr kick)
- Oakland – Bradshaw 34 pass from Plunkett (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Smith 13 pass from Stoudt (Bahr kick)
- Oakland – Branch 56 pass from Plunkett (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Bell 36 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 32
- Oakland – Branch 34 pass from Plunkett (Bahr kick)
- Oakland – FG Bahr 36
Week 8 (Sunday October 26, 1980): at Cleveland Browns
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 10 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 26 |
| Browns | 0 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 27 |
at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
- Game time: 1:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 79,095
- Referee: Bob Frederic
- TV announcers: (NBC) Don Criqui (play by play), John Brodie (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Hawthorne 1 run (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 27
- Cleveland – Hill 5 pass from Sipe (Cockroft kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 22
- Pittsburgh – Hawthorne 2 run (Bahr kick)
- Cleveland – G. Pruitt 6 pass from Sipe (Cockroft kick)
- Pittsburgh – Thornton 2 run (kick failed)
- Cleveland – G. Pruitt 7 pass from Sipe (kick failed)
- Cleveland – Newsome 18 pass from Sipe (Cockroft kick)
Week 9 (Sunday November 2, 1980): vs. Green Bay Packers
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Packers | 7 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 20 |
| Steelers | 2 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 22 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 1:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 52,165
- Referee: Ben Dreith
- TV announcers: (CBS) Pat Summerall (play by play), Tom Brookshier (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Safety, ball snapped out of end zone
- Green Bay – Ellis 7 pass from Dickey (Birney kick)
- Pittsburgh – Swann 7 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Green Bay – Ellis 69 pass from Dickey (Birney kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 27
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 18
- Pittsburgh – Bleier 4 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Green Bay – Thompson 14 pass from Dickey (kick blocked)
Week 10 (Sunday November 9, 1980): at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 10 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| Buccaneers | 7 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
at Tampa Stadium, Tampa, Florida
- Game time: 1:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 71,636
- Referee: Fred Wyant
- TV announcers: (NBC) Dick Enberg (play by play), Merlin Olsen (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 48
- Pittsburgh – Winston recovered blocked punt in end zone (Bahr kick)
- Tampa Bay – House 26 pass from Williams (Yepremian kick)
- Pittsburgh – Thornton 1 run (Bahr kick)
- Tampa Bay – Giles 12 pass from Williams (Yepremian kick)
- Pittsburgh – Swann 20 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Tampa Bay – Bell 8 pass from Williams (Yepremian kick)
Week 11 (Sunday November 16, 1980): vs. Cleveland Browns
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Browns | 0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Steelers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 16 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 1:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 54,563
- Referee: Jerry Markbreit
- TV announcers: (NBC) Dick Enberg (play by play), Merlin Olsen (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Smith 10 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Cleveland – Newsome 4 pass from Sipe (kick failed)
- Cleveland – Logan 15 pass from Sipe (Cockroft kick)
- Pittsburgh – Safety, Toews tackled Evans in end zone
- Pittsburgh – Swann 3 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
Week 12 (Sunday November 23, 1980): at Buffalo Bills
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 13 |
| Bills | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York
- Game time: 1:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 79,659
- Referee: Dick Jorgensen
- TV announcers: (NBC) Don Criqui (play by play), John Brodie (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Harris 2 run (Bahr kick)
- Buffalo – Butler 29 pass from Ferguson (Mike-Mayer kick)
- Buffalo – Butler 10 pass from Ferguson (Mike-Mayer kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 36
- Buffalo – Brown 34 run (Mike-Mayer kick)
- Buffalo – Gant 2 pass from Ferguson (Mike-Mayer kick)
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 42
Week 13 (Sunday November 30, 1980): vs. Miami Dolphins
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dolphins | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| Steelers | 0 | 13 | 3 | 7 | 23 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 1:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 51,384
- Referee: Cal Lepore
- TV announcers: (NBC) Don Criqui (play by play), John Brodie (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 32
- Pittsburgh – Swann 30 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Miami – FG von Schamann 42
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 33
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 30
- Miami – Moore 31 pass from Woodley (von Schamann kick)
- Pittsburgh – Harris 9 run (Bahr kick)
Week 14 (Thursday December 4, 1980): at Houston Oilers
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Oilers | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
- Game time: 8:30 pm EST
- Game weather: Dome
- Game attendance: 53,960
- Referee: Ben Dreith
- TV announcers: (ABC) Frank Gifford (play by play), Don Meredith & Howard Cosell (color commentators)
Scoring Drives:
Week 15 (Sunday December 14, 1980): vs. Kansas City Chiefs
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | 0 | 3 | 13 | 0 | 16 |
| Steelers | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 21 |
at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Game time: 1:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 50,013
- Referee: Fred Silva
- TV announcers: (NBC) Marv Albert (play by play), Mike Haffner (color commentator)
Scoring Drives:
- Pittsburgh – Swann 9 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Kansas City – FG Lowery 36
- Kansas City – Hadnot 3 run (Lowery kick)
- Kansas City – FG Lowery 22
- Kansas City – FG Lowery 50
- Pittsburgh – Bell 13 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
- Pittsburgh – Bleier 11 run (Bahr kick)
Week 16 (Monday December 22, 1980): at San Diego Chargers
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steelers | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
| Chargers | 3 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 26 |
at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California
- Game time: 9:00 pm EST
- Game weather:
- Game attendance: 51,785
- Referee: Jim Tunney
- TV announcers: (ABC) Frank Gifford (play by play), Don Meredith & Howard Cosell (color commentators)
Scoring Drives:
- San Diego – FG Benirschke 33
- Pittsburgh – FG Bahr 32
- San Diego – FG Benirschke 26
- San Diego – FG Benirschke 26
- San Diego – Fouts 1 run (Benirschke kick)
- Pittsburgh – Thornton 2 run (Bahr kick)
- San Diego – FG Benirschke 33
- San Diego – Muncie 10 run (Benirschke kick)
- Pittsburgh – Cunningham 16 pass from Bradshaw (Bahr kick)
Standings
| AFC Central | ||||||
| Team | W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Browns | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 357 | 310 |
| Houston Oilers | 11 | 5 | 0 | .688 | 295 | 251 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 9 | 7 | 0 | .563 | 352 | 313 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 244 | 312 |
References
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