1991 Pittsburgh Steelers season

The 1991 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the franchise's 59th season as a professional sports franchise and as a member of the National Football League (NFL).

1991 Pittsburgh Steelers season
OwnerThe Rooney family
General managerTom Donahoe
Head coachChuck Noll
Home fieldThree Rivers Stadium
Results
Record7–9
Division place2nd AFC Central
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers
AP All-ProsNone
Team MVPGreg Lloyd
Team ROYAdrian Cooper

The Steelers struggled early as Neil O'Donnell took over from Bubby Brister at quarterback. The Steelers ended the season winning their last two games, 17–10, over the Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns at Three Rivers Stadium to finish with a 7–9 record. Following the season Chuck Noll announced his retirement, ending his 23-year career in which he won four Super Bowls while posting an overall record of 209–156–1.

Offseason

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NFL draft

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1991 Pittsburgh Steelers draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 17 Huey Richardson  Defensive end Florida
2 46 Jeff Graham  Wide receiver Ohio State
3 73 Ernie Mills  Wide receiver Florida
4 88 Sammy Walker  Cornerback Texas Tech
4 103 Adrian Cooper  Tight end Oklahoma
6 158 Leroy Thompson  Running back Penn State
7 185 Andre Jones  Linebacker Notre Dame
8 212 Dean Dingman  Guard Michigan
9 238 Bruce McGonnigal  Tight end Virginia
10 269 Ariel Solomon  Tackle Colorado
11 296 Efrum Thomas  Defensive back Alabama
12 323 Jeff Brady  Linebacker Kentucky
      Made roster  

Staff

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1991 Pittsburgh Steelers staff

Front office

  • President – Daniel M. Rooney
  • Vice president – John R. McGinley
  • Vice president – Arthur J. Rooney, Jr.
  • Director of communications – Joe Gordon
  • Controller – Dan McGrogan
  • Assistant controller - business – Dan Ferens
  • Public relations director – Dan Edwards
  • Community relations coordinator – Ron Miller
  • Ticket sales manager – Geraldine Glenn
  • Assistant controller - office – Jim Ellenberger
  • Director of player personnel – Dick Haley
  • Director of football development – Tom Donahoe
  • Football business manager – James A. Boston
  • College scouting coordinator – Tom Modrak
  • Talent scout – Bob Schmitz
  • Talent scout – Max McCartney
  • Talent scout – Charles Bailey
  • Talent scout – Bob Lane

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

  • Conditioning coach – Jon Kolb
  • Dentist – Dr. George P. Boucek
  • Ophthalmologist – Dr. Phillip Buzzelli
  • Physician, orthopedic – Dr. Thomas W. Cowan
  • Neurological surgery consultant – Dr. Joseph C. Maroon
  • Physician, M.D. – Dr. Richard Rydze
  • Physician, consultant – Dr. Abraham J.Twerski
  • Physician, M.D. – Dr. Anthony P. Yates
  • Administrative trainer - Ralph Berlin
  • Head trainer – John Norwig
  • Equipment manager – Anthony Parisi
  • Field manager – Rodgers Freyvogel
  • Video & film director – Bob McCartney
  • Video assistant – Pat Dolan
  • Photographers – Mike Fabus, Bill Amatucci

[1]


Notable additions include Adrian Cooper, Neil O'Donnell and Ernie Mills.

Roster

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1991 Pittsburgh Steelers roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams

Practice squad


[2] [3] [4] Reserve

Rookies in italics
47 active, 9 reserve, 3 practice squad

Preseason

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue
1 August 4 Washington Redskins W 16–7 1–0 Three Rivers Stadium
2 August 10 at Minnesota Vikings L 24–34 1–1 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome
3 August 17 at Philadelphia Eagles L 20–21 1–2 Veterans Stadium
4 August 23 at Detroit Lions W 16–3 2–2 Pontiac Silverdome

Regular season

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Schedule

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Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue
1 September 1 San Diego Chargers W 26–20 1–0 Three Rivers Stadium
2 September 8 at Buffalo Bills L 34–52 1–1 Rich Stadium
3 September 15 New England Patriots W 20–6 2–1 Three Rivers Stadium
4 September 22 at Philadelphia Eagles L 14–23 2–2 Veterans Stadium
5 Bye
6 October 6 at Indianapolis Colts W 21–3 3–2 Hoosier Dome
7 October 14 New York Giants L 20–23 3–3 Three Rivers Stadium
8 October 20 Seattle Seahawks L 7–27 3–4 Three Rivers Stadium
9 October 27 at Cleveland Browns L 14–17 3–5 Cleveland Municipal Stadium
10 November 3 at Denver Broncos L 13–20 3–6 Mile High Stadium
11 November 10 at Cincinnati Bengals W 33–27 4–6 Riverfront Stadium
12 November 17 Washington Redskins L 14–41 4–7 Three Rivers Stadium
13 November 24 Houston Oilers W 26–14 5–7 Three Rivers Stadium
14 November 28 at Dallas Cowboys L 10–20 5–8 Texas Stadium
15 December 8 at Houston Oilers L 6–31 5–9 Astrodome
16 December 15 Cincinnati Bengals W 17–10 6–9 Three Rivers Stadium
17 December 22 Cleveland Browns W 17–10 7–9 Three Rivers Stadium
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

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Week 1 (Sunday September 1, 1991): vs. San Diego Chargers

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1 2 3 4 Total
Chargers 0 3 0 17 20
Steelers 3 7 6 10 26

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time: 4:00 PM EDT
  • Game weather: 80 °F (27 °C) (Sunny)
  • Game attendance: 55,848
  • Referee: Gerald Austin
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Joel Meyers (play by play), Dan Hampton (color commentator)

Scoring drives:

  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 38
  • San Diego – FG Carney 48
  • Pittsburgh – Calloway 33 pass from Brister (Anderson kick)
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 29
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 31
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 39
  • San Diego – Lewis 11 pass from Bernstine (Carney kick)
  • San Diego – FG Carney 35
  • Pittsburgh – Stone 89 pass from O'Donnell (Anderson kick)
  • San Diego – Jefferson 5 pass from Friesz (Carney kick)


Week 2 (Sunday September 8, 1991): at Buffalo Bills

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1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 10 17 7 34
Bills 10 14 7 21 52

at Rich Stadium, Orchard Park, New York

  • Game time: 1:00 PM EDT
  • Game weather: 84 °F (29 °C) (Sunny)
  • Game attendance: 79,545
  • Referee: Tom Dooley
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Tom Hammond (play by play), Joe Namath (color commentator)

Scoring drives:


Week 3 (Sunday September 15, 1991): vs. New England Patriots

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1 2 3 4 Total
Patriots 0 6 0 0 6
Steelers 3 3 0 14 20

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time: 1:00 PM EDT
  • Game weather: 86 °F (30 °C) (Sunny)
  • Game attendance: 53,703
  • Referee: Johnny Grier
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Joel Meyers (play by play), Dan Hampton (color commentator)

Scoring drives:

  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 49
  • New England – FG Staurovsky 33
  • New England – FG Staurovsky 28
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 32
  • Pittsburgh – Green 32 pass from Brister (Anderson kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Mills recovered blocked punt in end zone (Anderson kick)


Week 4 (Sunday September 22, 1991): at Philadelphia Eagles

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1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 14 0 0 0 14
Eagles 7 6 7 3 23

at Veterans Stadium, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

  • Game time: 1:00 PM EDT
  • Game weather: 66 °F (19 °C) (Mostly Sunny)
  • Game attendance: 65,511
  • Referee: Bernie Kukar
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Marv Albert (play by play), Bill Parcells (color commentator)

Scoring drives:

  • Pittsburgh – Hoge 12 pass from Brister (Anderson kick)
  • Philadelphia – McMahon 1 run (Ruzek kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Green 8 pass from Brister (Anderson kick)
  • Philadelphia – FG Ruzek 27
  • Philadelphia – FG Ruzek 34
  • Philadelphia – Drummond 2 run (Ruzek kick)
  • Philadelphia – FG Ruzek 20


Week 5 (Sunday September 29, 1991): Bye Week

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Week 6 (Sunday October 6, 1991): at Indianapolis Colts

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1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 0 7 14 21
Colts 0 3 0 0 3

at Hoosier Dome, Indianapolis, Indiana

  • Game time: 8:00 PM EDT
  • Game weather: Dome
  • Game attendance: 55,383
  • Referee: Larry Nemmers
  • TV announcers: (TNT) Skip Caray (play by play), Pat Haden (color commentator)

Scoring drives:


Week 7 (Monday October 14, 1991): vs. New York Giants

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1 2 3 4 Total
Giants 7 6 7 3 23
Steelers 0 0 3 17 20

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Scoring drives:

  • New York Giants – Cross 12 pass from Hostetler (Bahr kick)
  • New York Giants – FG Bahr 45
  • New York Giants – FG Bahr 40
  • New York Giants – Meggett 30 run (Bahr kick)
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 26
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 39
  • Pittsburgh – Lipps 16 pass from O'Donnell (Anderson kick)
  • Pittsburgh – Green 5 pass from O'Donnell (Anderson kick)
  • New York Giants – FG Bahr 44


Week 8 (Sunday October 20, 1991): vs. Seattle Seahawks

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1 2 3 4 Total
Seahawks 3 14 3 7 27
Steelers 0 0 7 0 7

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time: 1:00 PM EDT
  • Game weather: 47 °F (8 °C) (Partly Sunny)
  • Game attendance: 54,678
  • Referee: Gordon McCarter
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Mel Proctor (play by play), Joe Namath (color commentator)

Scoring drives:


Week 9 (Sunday October 27, 1991): at Cleveland Browns

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1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 7 0 7 14
Browns 3 7 7 0 17

at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio

  • Game time: 4:00 PM EST
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 78,285
  • Referee: Bob McElwee
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Don Criqui (play by play), Bob Trumpy (color commentator)

Scoring drives:


Week 10 (Sunday November 3, 1991): at Denver Broncos

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1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 3 7 0 3 13
Broncos 0 17 3 0 20

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

  • Game time: 8:00 PM EST
  • Game weather: 16 °F (−9 °C), wind 8 mph (13 km/h) mph
  • Game attendance: 70,973
  • Referee: Dale Hamer
  • TV announcers: (ESPN) Mike Patrick (play by play), Joe Theismann (color commentator)

Scoring drives:


Week 11 (Sunday November 10, 1991): at Cincinnati Bengals

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1 2 3 4OT Total
Steelers 0 6 7 146 33
Bengals 10 7 0 100 27

at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio

Scoring drives:


Week 12 (Sunday November 17, 1991): vs. Washington Redskins

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1 2 3 4 Total
Redskins 7 10 10 14 41
Steelers 0 0 0 14 14

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time: 1:00 PM EST
  • Game weather: 47 °F (8 °C) (Sunny)
  • Game attendance: 56,813
  • Referee: Tom White
  • TV announcers: (CBS) Dick Stockton (play by play), Merlin Olsen (color commentator)

Scoring drives:


Week 13 (Sunday November 24, 1991): vs. Houston Oilers

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1 2 3 4 Total
Oilers 0 7 0 7 14
Steelers 6 10 7 3 26

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Game time: 1:00 PM EST
  • Game weather: 34 °F (1 °C) (Cloudy)
  • Game attendance: 45,795
  • Referee: Howard Roe
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Don Criqui (play by play), Bob Trumpy (color commentator)

Scoring drives:

  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 20
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 28
  • Houston – Givins 10 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick)
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 33
  • Pittsburgh – Stone 43 pass from O'Donnell (Anderson kick)
  • Pittsburgh – W. Williams 1 run (Anderson kick)
  • Houston – Jeffries 15 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick)
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 24


Week 14 (Thursday November 28, 1991): at Dallas Cowboys

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1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 0 3 7 10
Cowboys 7 3 0 10 20

at Texas Stadium, Irving, Texas

  • Game time: 4:00 PM EST
  • Game weather:
  • Game attendance: 62,253
  • Referee: Red Cashion
  • TV announcers: (NBC) Dick Enberg (play by play), Bill Walsh (color commentator)

Scoring drives:

  • Dallas – E. Smith 6 run (Willis kick)
  • Dallas – FG Willis 19
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 42
  • Dallas – FG Willis 43
  • Pittsburgh – W. Williams 3 run (Anderson kick)
  • Dallas – Irvin 66 pass from Beuerlein (Willis kick)


Week 15 (Sunday December 8, 1991): at Houston Oilers

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1 2 3 4 Total
Steelers 0 3 3 0 6
Oilers 7 3 7 14 31

at Astrodome, Houston, Texas

Scoring drives:

  • Houston – Pinkett 7 run (Del Greco kick)
  • Houston – FG Del Greco 24
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 54
  • Houston – Jeffires 16 pass from Moon (Del Greco kick)
  • Pittsburgh – FG Anderson 36
  • Houston – Pinkett 11 run (Del Greco kick)
  • Houston – A. Smith 70 fumble return (Del Greco kick)


Week 16 vs Bengals

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Week Sixteen: Cincinnati Bengals (2–12) at Pittsburgh Steelers (5–9)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Bengals 0 7 3010
Steelers 10 0 0717

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Game information

Week 17 vs Browns

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Week Seventeen: Cleveland Browns (6–9) at Pittsburgh Steelers (6–9)
Quarter 1 2 34Total
Browns 0 3 0710
Steelers 3 0 7717

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Game information

Chuck Noll's final game as head coach

Standings

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AFC Central
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
(3) Houston Oilers 11 5 0 .688 5–1 10–2 386 251 L1
Pittsburgh Steelers 7 9 0 .438 4–2 7–5 292 344 W2
Cleveland Browns 6 10 0 .375 2–4 6–6 293 298 L3
Cincinnati Bengals 3 13 0 .188 1–5 2–10 263 435 W1

References

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  1. ^ 1991 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  2. ^ 1991 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  3. ^ 1992 Pittsburgh Steelers Media Guide.
  4. ^ "1991 Pittsburgh Steelers". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 24, 2014.
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