Tournament of Past Champions ~ Elite 4 Matchup – Battle of the ‘70s

Like the Green Bay Packers, the Mythical bracket champion 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers are quite familiar with championship games. The last of the great Steelers teams of the 70’s, the ’79 Steelers have alone among their franchise brethren emerged from the bracket competition of Creative Misfortune’s Tournament of Past Champions. Led by an experienced Terry Bradshaw, the fleet-footed and powerful Franco Harris and a dominating defense, Pittsburgh fought their way through round after round of tournament action.

Entering the tournament feeling disrespected at being a 20-seed (earned by a less than scintillating 12-4 regular season record), the ’79 Steelers soon proved they were a team to be reckoned with. A dominating, opening round 26-17 victory over the 2004 Philadelphia Eagles gave way to a gut-check, 17-16 win over the 1992 Buffalo Bills- a matchup in which the Steelers only managed to win 8 of the 20 simulations outright.

Pittsburgh recovered in round three by knocking out the 1992 Dallas Cowboys (no less) in a 16-10 defensive battle. A Fortunate 16 round defeat of the 1963 San Diego Chargers propelled them into the Mythical bracket championship game against the veteran 1949 Philadelphia Eagles. 20 gritty simulations later, the ’79 Steelers walked away with a narrow 14-12 victory and moved on to face the 1977 Dallas Cowboys in the Elite 4.

For their part, the Dauntless bracket champion 1977 Dallas Cowboys came into the tournament seeded eighth and their defense made quick work of their first round opponent, the 1965 AFL Champion Buffalo Bills. At the final gun, the Cowboys moved onto round two with a 17-7 win. There they faced one of the fabled Cleveland teams of the late ‘40s, but Dallas handled the ’47 Browns easily, 14-10.

The undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins stood between the Cowboys and a spot in the Fortunate 16. Defense prevailed for Dallas again and the top-seeded Dolphins were undefeated no more- swept from the tournament by the score of 17-14. Following the victory over the Dolphins, the 1994 San Francisco 49ers ended up being a strong, yet beatable team, and Dallas advanced to the Dauntless bracket championship game with another 17-14 victory.

The 1967 Oakland Raiders remained Dallas’ last contest in bracket competition. Despite their offensive capabilities, the Cowboys shut down Oakland’s passing game to clinch the Dauntless bracket championship with a narrow 16-14 win.

Now, on a simulated neutral field, the second of the Elite 4 Tournament of Past Champions matchups gets underway, featuring the 20-seeded 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers vs the 8-seeded 1977 Dallas Cowboys.

First Quarter:

Pittsburgh took the opening kickoff and set out immediately to show the Dallas defense they weren’t afraid of them. Power runs, both inside and outside, kept the Cowboys guessing. A 20-yard play-action pass to Lynn Swann set the Steelers up for a field goal and they took an early 3-0 lead.

Dallas failed to move the ball in response and quarterback Roger Staubach was hit from behind and fumbled for the game’s first turnover. Four plays later Franco Harris pounded the ball in from the three-yard line and Pittsburgh maintained a solid, 10-0 lead as the first quarter came to a close.

End of First Quarter: Pittsburgh 10, Dallas 0

Second Quarter:

The Steelers defense continued to dominate and forced Dallas into three successive three-and-outs. By contrast, the Pittsburgh offense moved the ball at will against the Cowboys defense. A field goal early in the quarter expanded Pittsburgh’s lead to 13 and another with six minutes to go in the first half put the Steelers up 16-0. Dallas, however, refused to lie down before their foes.

Roger Staubach opened up Dallas’ two-minute drill early and hit seven straight passes before connecting with Drew Pearson on a fade route to the back corner of the end zone to give Dallas their first score of the game as the half ended.

Halftime: Pittsburgh 16, Dallas 7

Third Quarter:

The Cowboys received the second-half kickoff and went right back to work. The Steelers, suddenly unable to stop Dallas’ passing attack, fell back into nickel and dime coverages, but Staubach still carved them up with his precision passes. Seven minutes into the quarter, Staubach connected with Tight End Billy Joe Dupree across the middle for his second touchdown of the game. The Steelers defense walked off the field shouting at each other, angry that their early 16-0 lead had nearly been squandered.

The Steelers took possession of the ball and responded to the Cowboys score with a heavy dose of Franco Harris. The powerful running back moved the chains time and time again, helped by a few key play-action pass conversions on third down. The Cowboys defense looked winded as the third quarter came to a close, despite being down by only two points.

End of Third Quarter: Pittsburgh 16, Dallas 14

Fourth Quarter:

The Steelers kept their running game going into the fourth quarter and Dallas had no answer for their powerful rushing attack. Franco Harris broke two tackles in the middle of the line and bounced the ball to the outside where he scampered 24 yards for another touchdown. Dallas, down by two scores with time running out, went into hurry-up mode once again, but Pittsburgh’s relentless pass rush forced Staubach to scramble out of the pocket and throw the ball away. More incompletions led to a stalled Dallas drive and they punted with six minutes left to play.

Pittsburgh once again relied on the power of their offensive line and ended the game with kneel downs after they moved the chains three times against the winded Dallas defense.

Final Score: Pittsburgh 23, Dallas 14

Congratulations to the 1979 Pittsburgh Steelers.

They will now face the 1999 St. Louis Rams to determine Creative Misfortune's Ultimate Champion of Past Champions.

Check back on Thursday to see which of these two great teams will emerge victorious in Creative Misfortune’s final Tournament of Past Champions matchup…