Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Chuck Noll hired Carson as defensive coordinator in 1972. Under Carson, the "Steel Curtain" developed as one of the best defenses in National Football League history. The defense, led by Jack Lambert, Mel Blount, Jack Ham and Mean Joe Greene, gave up fewer points than any other American Football Conference team in Pittsburgh's Super Bowl seasons of 1974 and 1975. In 1976, the team gave up fewer than 10 points a game.