We’re almost to the finish line of the 2023 offseason. To get us over the hump, I’m taking a look at some Pittsburgh Steelers’ history and a list of franchise “firsts,” from the standard to the quirky. The pioneers who were the first to reach milestones no Steeler had hit before.
THE FIRST Touchdown – Martin “Butch” Kottler (1933)
For a franchise with rich defensive history, The Steel Curtain to Blitzburgh, it’s only fitting Pittsburgh’s first ever touchdown came on the defensive side of the ball. They had to wait until their second game to find paydirt, only managing a safety off a blocked punt in their inaugural game against the New York Giants.
The Steelers, then known as the Pirates, scored their first touchdown in the most dramatic way possible. In the second quarter of their second game against the Chicago Cardinals, Butch Kottler pick-sixed Chicago, 99 yards the other way to the house.
Yup, 99 yards. The only non-return touchdown longer than that? James Harrison’s 100-yard pick-six in the 2008 Super Bowl win over the Arizona Cardinals. Something about the Cardinals, I guess.
Of course, we have no footage of the play. Instead, we rely on newspaper accountings of the time. There is some dispute about the runback, the defunct Pittsburgh Press listing it as a 96-yard return while the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette calls it a 99-yard interception score. The latter is what’s official and seems more likely. We noted in our 1933 recap the discrepancy is likely due to the Press noting where the line of scrimmage was as opposed to the correct where the ball was intercepted.
Kottler’s score put a dent into the Cardinals’ 13-0 lead with portly kicker Mose Kelsch, the first specialist in NFL history, making it 13-7. Pittsburgh’s first offensive touchdown came in the fourth quarter with star athlete Paul Moss catching an 11-yard pass from Bill Tanguay. Kelsch booted the game-winning extra point. It wasn’t only Pittsburgh’s first score but their first win, holding on to take home a 14-13 victory.
How was Kottler rewarded? Two weeks later, he was cut, in part due to old NFL rules that had reduced rosters throughout the season. On October 11th, he was one of four Steelers/Pirates who got their pink slips. Tanguay was another name released, meaning Pittsburgh got their first-ever scorer and first touchdown passer two weeks after the fact. Harsh. It didn’t help turn around their season and they won just one game of their final seven, finishing the year 3-6-2. It wasn’t a memorable season but Kottler made one heck of a memorable play.
