Super Bowl XIV
Super Bowl XIV
1979 - Steelers vs. Rams

Super Bowl XIV

"They were a dominant football team." - Jack Youngblood

In Super Bowl XIV, the defending champion Steelers were 10-point favorites and aiming for their fourth NFL title in six years. Their opponent was the Los Angeles Rams, who had advanced to the big game despite a 9-7 record. And in front of 100,000-plus fans at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Pittsburgh would face a surprising challenge. The Rams led the Steelers, 13-10 at halftime, and in the third quarter, things got worse for the Steelers: quarterback Terry Bradshaw was picked off twice, and star wide receiver Lynn Swann was injured and wouldn’t return. After three quarters, the score was 19-17 in favor of Los Angeles. In the final quarter, though, Pittsburgh showed why they were champions: on a critical third and eight, a beautiful long spiral from Bradshaw landed into the arms of the well-covered receiver, John Stallworth, whose difficult catch at full speed resulted in a 73-yard touchdown. Later in the quarter, Stallworth made another tough reception on a long throw from Bradshaw which led to a short touchdown run by running back Franco Harris, and the Steelers won, 31-19.