Accepted protocol in the wedding industry is to commemorate a 50th anniversary with a gift of gold, and within the business of professional football that same span of time can represent the gold standard as well. Fifty years ago was 1974, and that NFL Draft had the Pittsburgh Steelers do it better than any other franchise ever has, before or since.
In 17 rounds over two days, the Steelers identified and selected four Hall of Fame players over the first five rounds, and then once the picking was over they added a fifth. Five busts in Canton. Four Lombardi Trophies. Twenty combined Super Bowl rings. And immortality in the world of professional sports drafting.
Chuck Noll was hired by the Steelers on Jan. 27, 1969, and the next day the franchise spent its first pick in that NFL Draft on Joe Greene and ushered in a new era. The new era reflected an acknowledgement that the annual NFL Draft
