History of the position: Steelers quarterbacks

The 1970s

Although some backups filled in during the decade, the 70s were the years of Terry Bradshaw. Yes, the Steelers defense was legendary but the offense put up big numbers throughout the decade as well. The Steelers won four Super Bowls during the seventies and became a rich franchise that finally saw success after many poor seasons.

Bradshaw was the first overall pick of the 1970 NFL draft and had a rocky start to his career. As players like Franco Harris. Lynn Swann and John Stallworth surrounded him, Bradshaw began to make his hall of fame career obvious to the NFL.

Bradshaw’s best season came in 1978 when he was awarded the NFL MVP award for the most valuable player. He put up a stat line of 2,915 yards passing, 28 passing touchdowns, 20 interceptions, one rushing touchdown, a pro bowl nomination, and a First-team All-pro nomination.

Bradshaw would go onto have an amazing career that would send him to Canton with a career stat sheet that included 27,989 yards passing, 212 passing touchdowns, 2,257 rushing yards, 32 rushing touchdowns, three Pro Bowl nominations, one First-team All-pro nomination, four Super Bowl Championships, two Super Bowl MVP’s, and one NFL MVP. Bradshaw was and still is one of the best, if not the best, quarterbacks to ever wear the Steelers uniform.