The 1939 Pittsburgh Pirates season was the franchise's seventh season as a professional football club in the National Football League (NFL). The Pirates brought John McNally back for his third year, however, after finishing with a 2–9 record, Owner Art Rooney provided him with support by signing Walt Kiesling during the offseason. Despite this, the Pirates experienced their worst season yet, placing last in the league with a 1–9–1 record. The team just barely tallied a number in the win column, but during Week 11, they beat the Philadelphia Eagles. It was their first win at home in 9 games at Forbes Field (Week 10, 1937). It was also the final season for the franchise before becoming the "Steelers" the following season.

Offseason

1939 NFL draft

Pittsburgh's 1939 Draft (like many of the Steelers drafts from these days) was useless. The one player that played longer 1 season was Sam Boyd who played just 3 seasons for the Pirates/Steelers. The Pirates also traded their first two picks to Chicago and Brooklyn. The Bears would draft future Hall of Famer, QB Sid Luckman, and the Dodgers would select Clarence "Pug" Manders who eventually played 9 years of pro ball.

Regular season

Schedule

Game summaries

Week 1 (Thursday September 14, 1939): Brooklyn Dodgers

at Ebbets Field, Brooklyn, New York Scoring Drives:

Week 2 (Sunday, September 24, 1939): Chicago Cardinals

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Scoring Drives:

Week 3 (Monday October 2, 1939): Chicago Bears

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Scoring Drives: Between this game and the next, the Pirates shoehorned in a midseason exhibition game against the McKeesport Olympics, in McKeesport on October 4. The Pirates won that game, 9–6.

Week 4 (Sunday October 8, 1939): New York Giants

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Scoring Drives:

Week 5 (Sunday October 15, 1939): Washington Redskins

at Griffith Stadium, Washington, DC Scoring Drives:

Week 6 (Sunday October 22, 1939): Washington Redskins

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Scoring Drives:

Week 7 (Sunday October 29, 1939): Cleveland Rams

at Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Cleveland, Ohio Scoring Drives:

Week 8 (Monday November 6, 1939): Brooklyn Dodgers

at Ebbets Field, Brooklyn, New York Scoring Drives:

Week 9 (Sunday November 19, 1939): New York Giants

at Polo Grounds, New York, NY Scoring Drives:

Week 10 (Thursday November 23, 1939): Philadelphia Eagles

at Shibe Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Scoring Drives:

Week 11 (Sunday November 26, 1939): Philadelphia Eagles

at Forbes Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Scoring Drives:

Standings