It’s 50 years ago when the Steelers had a string of years, 1975 to 1980, where most experts would say they had the best defense in the NFL, and some might assert the best in the game’s history. This defense, known as the Steel Curtain, was a major reason the Steelers won four Super Bowls during those years. This defense only gave up 162 points in 1975 and a mere 138 points in 1976. Three Rivers Stadium became famous as a field where opposing offenses came to die.
The name Steel Curtain originated in 1971 when a local radio station held a contest to name the Steelers’ defense; a local teenager won with that submission. The term “steel curtain” was a metaphor from a speech by Winston Churchill in 1946, where he said that an “iron curtain has descended” across Europe. His reference was to the political and physical divide in Europe between the West and the Soviet communist-controlled bloc of nations, where neither people nor ideas could pass through easily. The name was also a nod to Pittsburgh’s history as a center for steel manufacturing, which led to the team being named the Steelers in the 1940s.
Anchoring this defense was the “Steel Curtain Four,” the first all-Black starting defensive line in league history. The Wall Street Journal at the time referred to the players, who were all raised in the South, as the “Tuskegee Airmen in cleats.” The four were “Mean Joe” Greene, “Mad Dog” Dwight White, “Hollywood Bags” L.C. Greenwood and “Fats” Ernie Holmes. They were the most feared and respected front four in the NFL and possibly of all time.
The four were stalwarts in shutting down the best running backs, pressuring quarterbacks as if they lined up in their backfield, and causing numerous fumbles or opportunities for interceptions.
The importance of these four players to the Steelers’ success in the 1970s cannot be understated. Without them, the Steelers would have been a good team but not a great one of championship caliber. They were part of the secret sauce that helped keep the Steelers in games when the offense was floundering.
The genesis of the Steel Curtain was a combination of outstanding drafting by Coach Chuck Noll, along with the defensive genius of Bud Carson, the architect of the Steel Curtain. Carson was hired as a defensive backs coach by Noll in 1972 after being fired as the head coach of Georgia Tech. In 1973, Carson was named defensive coordinator and developed the raw talent and creative defensive schemes that defined the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense from the early 1970s to 1977 when he left. This foundation led to the Steelers winning two more Super Bowls in the following years (1978 and 1980) after he departed. Many of the current defensive schemes in the game today may trace their roots to Carson and the Steel Curtain.
Unfortunately, the Hall of Fame doesn’t induct players as a group but honors individuals for their achievements. The original Steel Curtain Four would have been enshrined years ago if they had. They played as a group and complemented each other. Team accomplishments meant more to them than individual honors.
Greene is the only member of the four in the Hall of Fame today. Many believe Greenwood deserves to be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame based on his record of being selected six times to the Pro Bowl, playing on four Super Bowl teams, and being named to the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team and Pittsburgh Steelers All-Time Team. There is a feeling that Greenwood has not been inducted because so many other Steeler players from those 1970s teams were already inducted, and some of his accomplishments were not given as much credit because he played alongside Greene, who has been recognized as one of the best defensive linemen of all time.
Today only “Mean Joe” of the four is still alive. The other three have all gone to that football stadium in the sky where Terrible Towels always wave, all the people were black and gold, Jimmy Pol’s “Steeler Fight Song” plays on an endless loop and Myron Cope’s screechy voice can be heard over the public address system.
Greg Fulton is a New Castle native living in Denver.