HISTORY
Founded as the Pittsburgh Pirates of the NFL in 1933. Changed name to Pittsburgh Steelers in 1941. Moved to AFC in 1970 as part of the AFL/NFL merger, and has never relocated.

CHAMPIONSHIP SUMMARY
League Championships: 5 - 1974 (Super Bowl), 1975 (Super Bowl), 1978 (Super Bowl), 1979 (Super Bowl), 2005 (Super Bowl)

Conference Championships: 6 - 1974 (AFC), 1975 (AFC), 1978 (AFC), 1979 (AFC), 1995 (AFC), 2005 (AFC)

Division Championships: 17 - 1972 (AFC Central), 1974 (AFC Central), 1975 (AFC Central), 1976 (AFC Central), 1977 (AFC Central), 1978 (AFC Central), 1979 (AFC Central), 1983 (AFC Central), 1984 (AFC Central), 1992 (AFC Central), 1994 (AFC Central), 1995 (AFC Central), 1996 (AFC Central), 1997 (AFC Central), 2001 (AFC Central), 2002 (AFC North), 2004 (AFC North)

Playoff Appearances: 1947, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005

2005 Finish: 11-5, 2 nd Place AFC North, SUPER BOWL CHAMPIONS

2006 PREVIEW

People may forget that the defending Super Bowl Champions did not even win their division last season, but that should change this year provided Ben Roethlisberger discovers that motorcycle helmets do exist!

In all seriousness, Big Ben almost miraculously escaped relatively unscathed from his accident and it appears that he will be ready for opening day. That is all the news that Pittsburgh may need to win the division this time around, given that Roethisberger has a career record of 26-3 as an NFL starter. While there was much sentiment surrounding the Jerome Bettis swan song, the truth is that he will not be missed as running back Willie Parker is still the fastest man on the team and a healthy Duce Staley could do just fine as a goal line back. The Steelers did lose Antwaan Eandel El, but they may have made up for that loss quickly with the selection of wide receiver Santonio Holmes of Ohio State in the first round of the draft. The offensive line remains one of the best in the game.

Pittsburgh ranked 5 th in the NFL in total defense last season, and the Steelers were virtually impossible to run on surrendering a lowly 86.0 rushing yards per contest. Throw in the fact that this team will blitz at every opportunity, and this is one of the most feared units in the league. In reality this team has virtually no holes, and we see a playoff rematch with Indianapolis on the horizon. This time however, it will be in the AFC Championship Game as opposed to the divisional round like last season. Unfortunately we look for the Colts to win the rematch and thwart the hopes of a Pittsburgh Super Bowl repeat, but this is still the team that every other squad will need to go through.

2006 Prediction: 1 st Place AFC North, AFC Championship Game Runner-up