The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a number of talented pass rushers throughout their history, with OLB T.J. Watt currently the team’s sack leader and well on his way to becoming an all-time great. While Watt didn’t crack The 33rd Team’s list of the 10 greatest pass rushers, his brother, J.J., did, and one former Steeler did as well in OLB Kevin Greene.
While Greene only spent three seasons in Pittsburgh, during his time with the team, he racked up 35.5 sacks, two Pro Bowl nods and one All-Pro as part of the Steelers’ Blitzburgh defense.
Prior to his time in Pittsburgh, Greene was a member of the Los Angeles Rams, where he racked up the bulk of his 160 career sacks, amassing 72.5 sacks in eight seasons. After he left Pittsburgh, Greene had stints with the Carolina Panthers and also spent one season with the San Francisco 49ers, and between the two teams he added 51.5 sacks to his total over just four seasons.
“With a highlight reel filled with examples of a fast, relentless presence, Greene was the motor of many successful defensive units. Only three players have more career sacks than his total of 160,” Ian Valentino wrote.
With 96.5 career sacks through his age-29 season and a three-time league leader in sacks, there could have been a case for Watt to crack to the top 10. But he’ll find himself on a list like this one day as long as he continues his prolific level of play and continues to get to the quarterback. Watt’s shown no signs of slowing down, and the Steelers are going to count on him once again to anchor their pass rush and help their defense be one of the best in the league.
Greene was the only current or former Steelers player on the list, and in fact, there were no current players listed among Valentino’s top pass-rushers of all time. DL Aaron Donald, who retired this offseason, made the list, coming in at No. 5 with his 111 career sacks. While Donald’s career sack totals aren’t as gaudy as some others, he was remarkably consistent, never finishing with less than five sacks in his 10-year career. He also led the league with 20.5 sacks in 2018.
To no surprise, Reggie White finished No. 1 on the list while Lawrence Taylor finished No. 2. Depending on how long Watt plays, he very well could find himself up toward the top of the list and ahead of J.J., who ranked No. 8. J.J. is confident that T.J. can surpass what he did in his career, and if that’s the case, there’s little doubt that when it’s all said and done, T.J. will be regarded as one of the best pass rushers to ever do it.
