Love Kevin Greene: A true Steeler in spirit



... only three years, but they were three great ones 

While Kevin Greene played for the Pittsburgh Steelers for just three years, he was a true Steeler in spirit and intensity.

After being inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame on Saturday, Greene pulled out a "Terrible Towel" and started waving it.

The sack machine said in his speech, “I would never quite experience anything like being a Pittsburgh Steeler, playing for Mr. Rooney and the Steeler organization that had such a rich history of just lining up and kicking (butt) and winning. ... It was the pinnacle of my football life.”

What I loved about Greene was his free spirit, his blonde hair flying out the back of his helmet while he relentlessly pursued QBs.

Greene put together some impressive numbers from 1993-94-95. The last year the team reached the Super Bowl, but the loss was not due to Greene and the defense.

Greene was introduced by Dom Capers, whom he met in 1993 when Capers was defensive coordinator for Bill Cowher. Greene recorded 12.5 tackles in 1993, but the following year was his best. He led the AFC with 14 sacks and was named as AFC Linebacker of the Year along with Junior Seau. Greene also made the Pro Bowl.

In a video introduction, Capers said, "He was a relentless player. He played the game with a passion. He had a lot of fire to him. You could see he was a very emotional player. His style was really one where he was going to wear the guy down that he was playing against. He was playing as hard in the fourth quarter as he was at the start of the game. For three hours on Sunday, you were going to get everything that he had.”

Former Steeler defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau said this about the LB, according to Behind the Steel Curtain."Kevin Greene is a great player against the run and one of the best pass rushers in NFL history. He is almost unblockable."

Greene made the Pro Bowl again in 1995, but the team also reached Super Bowl XXX. Unfortunately, they lost to Dallas, 24-17, due primarily to two key interceptions off passes of QB Neil O'Donnell.

Over the three years that Greene played in Pittsburgh, the team that featured Capers' Blitzburgh Defense led the NFL in sacks with 139 and allowed just 3.48 yards per rush, which was also best in the league.

Maybe the 2016 team could look at some video from those years.

According to the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel, "Greene addressed the crowd and his football brethren for 19 minutes, harnessing all of the brash passion and exuberance that made him one of the league’s all-time sack artists."

Greene was third on the NFL all-time leading sack artists with 160.

Greene and O'Donnell left for free agency after the 1995 season along with Chad Brown in 1996 because Steelers owner Dan Rooney was so tight with his money in those years. He still thought that he could build teams exclusively through the drafts.

LeBeau returned the Steelers to the Blitzburgh in the mid-2000s and they were superb in 2008 despite losing to Green Bay in the Super Bowl.

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