The appetite for the National Football League remains voracious. The only time much of the media and fans aren’t talking about the NFL for 365 days a year is when they’re discussing it 366 days a year (as is the case in 2024).
Be it the current state of the game or the league’s rich history, there’s always time for football talk. While there are those who scoff at reminiscing when it comes to players and teams, the proof is in the pudding when it comes to celebrating the 104-year history of the NFL.
This is the beginning of a five-part series looking at the league in 10-year increments. On this occasion, there’s a look at some significant players, games and team from the 1974 season. For some, this will hopefully be an enjoyable trip down memory lane. For others, it’s perhaps a chance to pick up on something they may not be aware of.
A look back at the National Football League in 1974
5. Returns (and more) of the Mack
He was a sixth-round pick by the Atlanta Falcons in 1970. However, diminutive offensive performer Mack Herron spent his first two seasons in professional football with the CFL’s Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He was a sensation north of the border, but off the field issues saw him eventually released by the club.
He wound up joining the New England Patriots in 1973, but his breakout campaign came in 1974. He finished with an astounding 2,444 total combined yards in 14 contests, to go along with 12 touchdowns. The former was a new NFL single-season record that lasted just one year before the Cardinals’ Terry Metcalf set a new mark in 1975. Sadly, those personal issues for the 5’5”, 170-pound pro would again catch up with him, and his final season was in 1975. All told, Herron proved to be an NFL one-hit wonder and for all the wrong reasons.
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.
2. A dynasty ends...
Under head coach Don Shula, the Miami Dolphins were a playoff team in each of his first five seasons with the franchise. The club earned a wild card berth in 1970, then went on to capture four consecutive AFC East titles. The team reached Super Bowl VI in 1971, a 24-3 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, then went on to prevail in back-to-back Super Bowls. The 1972 season was one of perfection (17-0), while the ’73 edition of Shula’s club was more dominant—especially in the postseason.
In hopes of a third straight NFL title, the Dolphins were vying for a fourth consecutive game on Super Sunday. The 1974 Dolphins were a so-so 3-2 after five weeks, but the club won eight of its final nine outings to finish 11-3 and first place in the division for the fourth straight year.
The hopes of a three peat were dashed by the Oakland Raiders in the divisional round. The Silver and Black rallied for a 28-26 victory in a classic playoff matchup. As it has turned out, that ’73 team was the Dolphins’ last Super Bowl title club.
1. And a dynasty begins
From 1933-71, the Pittsburgh Steelers (originally dubbed the Pirates) played in one postseason game. They lost to the Eagles, 21-0, in 1947 Eastern Divisional Playoffs. They went through head coaches like the Cookie Monster went through a bag of Oreos.
In 1969, the organization hired Colts’ assistant Chuck Noll to be their newest sideline leader. By 1972, thanks to some amazing drafting and development, the team won a division title and stunned the Raiders in the playoffs via the “Immaculate Reception.” A week later, the Steelers fell to the Dolphins in the AFC title game.
Two years later, the Steelers and Oakland Raiders would meet in the playoffs for the third consecutive season. John Madden’s club had dethroned the champion Miami Dolphins a week earlier and appeared to be primed to beat the Steelers for the second time in ’74. Noll’s club came up with a 24-13 victory at Oakland, and it was on to Super Bowl IX. The Pittsburgh defense dominated the Vikings, 16-6, at Tulane Stadium.
It was the first of four Super Bowl titles in a six-year span for the Black and Gold. The Steelers repeated in 1975 (X), then won back-to-back championships again in 1978 (XIII) and ’79 (XIV). From Noll to Joe Greene to Terry Bradshaw to Jack Ham to Jack Lambert to Franco Harris, etc. The list of Hall of Famers from those rosters is seemingly endless.