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NFL History: It was 50 years ago this season (1974)

By Russell S. Baxter

Jan 12, 1975; New Orleans, LA, USA; FILE PHOTO; Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle (63) Ernie Holmes and (68) L.C. Greenwood stop Minnesota Vikings running back (41) Dave Osborn during Super Bowl IX at Tulane Stadium. The Steelers defeated the Vikings 16-6 and earn their first Super Bowl Title. Mandatory Credit: Tony Tomsic-USA TODAY NETWORK
Jan 12, 1975; New Orleans, LA, USA; FILE PHOTO; Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle (63) Ernie Holmes and (68) L.C. Greenwood stop Minnesota Vikings running back (41) Dave Osborn during Super Bowl IX at Tulane Stadium. The Steelers defeated the Vikings 16-6 and earn their first Super Bowl Title. Mandatory Credit: Tony Tomsic-USA TODAY NETWORK / Tony Tomsic-USA TODAY Sports
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4. And working overtime!

Oh, the irony. From 1920-1973, a game in the American Professional Football Association (now the National Football League) could end in a tie. That would not change when it came to regular season, even when the Baltimore Colts and New York Giants played in sudden death overtime to decide the 1958 NFL Championship. Dubbed “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” Alan Ameche’s touchdown in the extra session gave the Colts a 23-17 victory.

Finally, the league opted for regular-season overtime starting in 1974. Just as was the case in the ‘58 title game, it would be a sudden death format. If neither team scored in OT, then the game would indeed end knotted. That’s exactly what happened in Week 2 at Denver, when the Steelers and Broncos wound up playing for a 35-35 tie.

Later that season, the New York Jets edged the New York Giants, 26-20, in overtime at the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut. There was a total of two overtime contests during the 1974 season.

3. NFC East champion St. Louis Cardinals?

The franchise that owns the longest current league championship drought has now resided in the desert since 1988. Born in 1898, the Cardinals originally called the Windy City home. In 1960, the club relocated to St. Louis and spent 28 seasons in the Gateway City.

With the on-the-field merger in 1970, the St. Louis Cardinals became a member of the NFC East. They joined the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, and Washington Redskins. In their first four seasons in the division, the team went through three head coaches and owned a combined 20-32-4 record.

That fourth year, a 4-9-1 finish for the third consecutive season, was under the command of head coach Don Coryell. That would soon change as Big Red would stun the football world with back-to-back NFC East title—starting in 1974 (10-4) and ’75 (11-3). Led by an impressive offensive line, quarterback Jim Hart and sensational weapons such as explosive Terry Metcalf and wideout Mel Gray, this was a fun club to watch.

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