The Pittsburgh Steelers cannot be the greatest franchise in NFL history
Despite owning six Vince Lombardi Trophies and boasting 22 Hall of Famers, the history of the Steelers is one of polar extremes. They’ve been a consistent playoff participant since 1992 and everyone knows about the Steel Curtain era of the 1970s. But before Chuck Noll turned the Black and Gold into a dynasty, Pittsburgh was plagued with one of the most inept teams the league has ever seen. --- A LIFETIME OF DISAPPOINTMENTS --- 1933 was the first season in the NFL for the club, then called the Pirates. In the league’s first season using a divisional layout, Pittsburgh finished dead last in an unremarkable five-team Eastern Division with a 3-6-2 record. For the seven years the team called itself the Pirates, they only managed to reach the .500 mark once, racking up 22 wins, 55 losses, and three ties in the process. By 1943, the team had changed its name to Steelers but the results were more of the same. Additionally, World War II had sapped every NFL team of players, and...