1980 Pittsburgh Steelers season

The 1980 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 48th season in the National Football League.

1980 Pittsburgh Steelers season
OwnerArt Rooney
Head coachChuck Noll
General managerDick Haley
Home fieldThree Rivers Stadium
Results
Record9–7
Division place3rd AFC Central
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers
AP All-Pros
Team MVPDonnie Shell

The Steelers struggled for the first time in many years. The aging defense was not 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

NFL draft
Main article: 1980 NFL draft
1980 Pittsburgh Steelers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 28 Mark Malone  Quarterback Arizona State
2 35 Bob Kohrs  Linebacker Arizona State
2 56 John Goodman  Defensive end Oklahoma
3 83 Ray Sydnor  Tight end Wisconsin
      Made roster  

Personnel

Staff
1980 Pittsburgh Steelers staff
Front office
  • Chairman of the Board – Arthur J. Rooney
  • President – Daniel M. Rooney
  • Vice President – John R. McGinley
  • Vice President – Arthur J. Rooney, Jr.
  • Public Relations Director – Ed Kiely
  • Traveling Secretary – James A. Boston
  • Publicity Director – Joe Gordon
  • Assistant Publicity Director – John Evenson
  • Controller – Dennis P. Thimons
  • Assistant Controller – James S. Maund
  • Director of Ticket Sales – Geraldine Glenn
  • Director of Player Personnel – Dick Haley
  • Assistant Director of Player Personnel – William Nunn, Jr.
  • Pro Talent Scout – Tom Modrak
  • Talent Scout – West Coast – Bob Schmitz
  • College Talent Scout – Joe Krupa

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches


Strength and conditioning

  • Paul Uram *Mike Walker *Physician, M.D. – Dr. David S. Huber
  • Physician, M.D. – Dr. Anthony P. Yates
  • Physician, Orthopedic – Dr. Paul Steele
  • Dentist – Dr. George P. Boucek
  • Ophthalmologist – Dr. Phillip Buzzelli
  • Trainer – Ralph Berlin
  • Assistant Trainer – Robert Osborne
  • Equipment Manager – Anthony Parisi
  • Field Manager – Bruce J. Lowry
  • Film Director – Bob McCartney
  • Photographer – Harry Homa

[3]

Roster
1980 Pittsburgh Steelers final roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

 Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

 Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

 Reserve lists


Practice squad [3] [4] [5]


Rookies in italics
 48 active, 7 inactive

Preseason

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Game Site Kickoff (ET) TV Result Record
1 Sat. Aug. 9 at New York Giants Giants Stadium 8:00 p.m. WIIC W 13–0 1–0
2 Fri. Aug. 15 at Atlanta Falcons Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium 9:00 p.m. ABC W 17–14 2–0
3 Sat. Aug. 23 New York Jets Three Rivers Stadium 6:00 p.m. WIIC L 20–13 2–1
4 Sat. Aug. 30 at Dallas Cowboys Texas Stadium 9:00 p.m. CBS W 31–10 3–1

Regular season

Schedule
Week Date Opponent Game Site Kickoff (ET) TV Result Record
1 Sun. Sep. 7 Houston Oilers Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 31–17 1–0
2 Sun. Sep. 14 at Baltimore Colts Memorial Stadium 2:00 p.m. NBC W 20–17 2–0
3 Sun. Sep. 21 at Cincinnati Bengals Riverfront Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 30–28 2–1
4 Sun. Sep. 28 Chicago Bears Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. CBS W 38–3 3–1
5 Sun. Oct. 5 at Minnesota Vikings Metropolitan Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 23–17 4–1
6 Sun. Oct. 12 Cincinnati Bengals Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 17–16 4–2
7 Mon. Oct. 20 Oakland Raiders Three Rivers Stadium 9:00 p.m. ABC L 45–34 4–3
8 Sun. Oct. 26 at Cleveland Browns Cleveland Municipal Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 27–26 4–4
9 Sun. Nov. 2 Green Bay Packers Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. CBS W 22–20 5–4
10 Sun. Nov. 9 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers Tampa Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 24–21 6–4
11 Sun. Nov. 16 Cleveland Browns Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 16–13 7–4
12 Sun. Nov. 23 at Buffalo Bills Rich Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC L 28–13 7–5
13 Sun. Nov. 30 Miami Dolphins Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 23–10 8–5
14 Thu. Dec. 4 at Houston Oilers Astrodome 8:30 p.m. ABC L 6–0 8–6
15 Sun. Dec. 14 Kansas City Chiefs Three Rivers Stadium 1:00 p.m. NBC W 21–16 9–6
16 Mon. Dec. 22 at San Diego Chargers San Diego Stadium 9:00 p.m. ABC L 26–17 9–7

Week 1: vs. Houston Oilers
Houston Oilers at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
Oilers 0 0170 17
• Steelers 17 0014 31

Week 2: at Baltimore Colts
Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Colts
1 234Total
• Steelers 3 1007 20
Colts 0 7100 17

Week 3: at Cincinnati Bengals
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cincinnati Bengals
1 234Total
Steelers 0 1477 28
• Bengals 10 3017 30

Week 4: vs. Chicago Bears
Chicago Bears at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
Bears 3 000 3
• Steelers 7 1777 38
  • Date: Sunday, September 28
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 53,987
  • Game weather: 58°F, wind 6 mph
  • Referee: Jerry Seeman
  • TV announcers (CBS): Frank Glieber and Roger Staubach

Week 5: at Minnesota Vikings
Pittsburgh Steelers at Minnesota Vikings
1 234Total
• Steelers 6 1070 23
Vikings 3 0014 17

Week 6: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati Bengals at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
• Bengals 10 700 17
Steelers 0 0160 16
  • Date: Sunday, October 12
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 53,668
  • Game weather: 44°F, wind 13 mph
  • Referee: Fred Silva
  • TV announcers (NBC): Sam Nover and Bob Trumpy

Week 7 : vs. Oakland Raiders
Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
• Raiders 7 21710 45
Steelers 10 14100 34

Week 8: at Cleveland Browns
Pittsburgh Steelers at Cleveland Browns
1 234Total
Steelers 10 3130 26
• Browns 0 7713 27
  • Date: Sunday, October 26
  • Location: Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 79,095
  • Game weather: 37°F, wind 25 mph
  • Referee: Bob Frederic
  • TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui and John Brodie

Week 9: vs. Green Bay Packers
Green Bay Packers at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
Packers 7 706 20
• Steelers 2 767 22
  • Date: Sunday, November 2
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 52,165
  • Game weather: 40°F, wind 7 mph
  • Referee: Ben Dreith
  • TV announcers (CBS): Pat Summerall and Tom Brookshier

Week 10: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Pittsburgh Steelers at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
1 234Total
• Steelers 10 1400 24
Buccaneers 7 770 21

Week 11: vs. Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
Browns 0 1300 13
• Steelers 0 709 16
  • Date: Sunday, November 16
  • Location: Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
  • Game start: 1:00 p.m. EST
  • Game attendance: 54,563
  • Game weather: 36°F, wind 8 mph
  • Referee: Jerry Markbreit
  • TV announcers (NBC): Dick Enberg and Merlin Olsen

Week 12: at Buffalo Bills
Pittsburgh Steelers at Buffalo Bills
1 234Total
Steelers 7 303 13
• Bills 7 777 28

Week 13: vs. Miami Dolphins
Miami Dolphins at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
Dolphins 0 307 10
• Steelers 0 1337 23

Week 14 : at Houston Oilers
Pittsburgh Steelers at Houston Oilers
1 234Total
Steelers 0 000 0
• Oilers 0 033 6

Week 15: vs. Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers
1 234Total
Chiefs 0 3130 16
• Steelers 7 0014 21

Week 16: at San Diego Chargers
Pittsburgh Steelers at San Diego Chargers
1 234Total
Steelers 0 377 17
• Chargers 3 6107 26

Standings
AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Cleveland Browns(2) 11 5 0 .688 4–2 8–4 357 310 W1
Houston Oilers(5) 11 5 0 .688 4–2 7–5 295 251 W3
Pittsburgh Steelers 9 7 0 .563 2–4 5–7 352 313 L1
Cincinnati Bengals 6 10 0 .375 2–4 4–8 244 312 L1

References
  1. ranked 23rd in the league in 1980
  2. Ranked 10th in the NFL
  3. 1980 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  4. 1981 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  5. "1980 Pittsburgh Steelers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-12-19.
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