1997 Pittsburgh Steelers season
| 1997 Pittsburgh Steelers season | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Head coach | Bill Cowher |
| General manager | Tom Donahoe |
| Owner | The Rooney Family |
| Home field | Three Rivers Stadium |
| Results | |
| Record | 11–5 |
| Division place | 1st AFC Central |
| Playoff finish |
Won Divisional Playoffs (Patriots) 7–6 Lost AFC Championship (Broncos) 21–24 |
| Pro Bowlers |
6
|
| AP All-Pros |
5
|
| Team MVP | Jerome Bettis |
| Team ROY | Chad Scott |
The 1997 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 65th season as a professional sports franchise and as a member of the National Football League.
This season was considered a transitional year due to many key free agent losses in the offseason, as well as the first season of Kordell Stewart starting at quarterback.
The Steelers finished with an 11–5 record, their fourth consecutive AFC Central top seed, and their sixth straight playoff appearance. In doing so, Steelers head coach Bill Cowher tied Hall of Fame coach Paul Brown with most consecutive playoff appearances to start a head coaching career in the NFL—a record Cowher still co-owns with Brown, as the Steelers missed the playoffs the following year.
The Steelers had 572 rushing attempts in 1997, the most in the 1990s. Their 2,479 total rushing yards were the third-most of the decade by any team.
The Steelers would host the AFC Championship Game for the third time in four years; however, they would ultimately lose to the eventual Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos.
Notable additions include Paul Wiggins and Mike Vrabel.
The Steelers saw many key free-agents leave the team, the biggest being cornerback Rod Woodson, whose ten-year tenure with the team ended due to a dispute over money with the Rooney family. Woodson would sign with the San Francisco 49ers as a result, though the Steelers would see him again in the following four seasons afterward as a member of the rival Baltimore Ravens. Other free-agent losses included Chad Brown, Ernie Mills, Andre Hastings, Deon Figures, and Brentson Buckner, among others. The team did manage to keep its other prized free-agent besides Woodson, locking up Jerome Bettis (who they had acquired in a trade with the St. Louis Rams the year before) with a four-year deal.
...
Wikipedia