Hell with the Lid Off: Inside the Fierce Rivalry Between the 1970s Oakland Raiders and Pittsburgh Steelers

Hell with the Lid Off looks at the ferocious five-year war waged by Pittsburgh and Oakland for NFL supremacy during the turbulent seventies. The roots of their rivalry dated back to the 1972 playoff game in Pittsburgh that ended with the "Immaculate Reception," Franco Harris's stunning touchdown that led the Steelers to a win over the Raiders in their first postseason meeting. That famous game ignited a fiery rivalry for NFL supremacy. Between 1972 and 1977, the Steelers and the Raiders--between them boasting an incredible twenty-six Pro Football Hall of Famers--collided in the playoffs five straight seasons and in the AFC title game three consecutive years.

Both teams favored force over finesse and had players whose forte was intimidation. Pittsburgh's Steel Curtain defense featured Mean Joe Greene, Jack Lambert, Jack Ham, and Mel Blount, the latter's heavy hits forcing an NFL rule in his name. The Raiders countered with "The Assassin," Jack Tatum, Skip Thomas (aka "Dr. Death"), George Atkinson, and Willie Brown in their memorable secondary. Each of their championships crowned the eventual Super Bowl winner, and their bloodcurdling encounters became so violent and vicious that they transcended the NFL and had to be settled in a U.S. district court.

With its account of classic games, legendary owners, coaches, and players with larger-than-life personalities, Hell with the Lid Off is a story of turbulent football and one of the game's best-known rivalries.


Author: Ed Gruver, Jim Campbell
Publisher: University of Nebraska Press
Published: 10/01/2019
Pages: 400
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.60lbs
Size: 9.31h x 6.42w x 1.41d
ISBN13: 9781496214676
ISBN10: 1496214676
BISAC Categories:
- Sports & Recreation | Football
- History | United States | State & Local | West (AK, CA, CO, HI, ID, MT
- History | United States | State & Local | Middle Atlantic (DC, DE, MD,

About the Author
Ed Gruver is an award-winning sportswriter and the author of several books, including Hairs vs. Squares: The Mustache Gang, the Big Red Machine, and the Tumultuous Summer of '72 (Nebraska, 2016) and From Baltimore to Broadway: Joe, the Jets, and the Super Bowl III Guarantee. Jim Campbell has worked at the Pro Football Hall of Fame and was a member of the Steelers' organization during their dynasty decade in the 1970s. He has written for numerous NFL publications and has authored several books on the NFL. Andy Russell is a former NFL linebacker who played his entire twelve-year career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, with whom he won two Super Bowls.