Historically, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been a franchise known for its defense. But over the past few seasons, the emphasis has turned to the offensive side of the football and the defense has been in a constant state of rebuilding. It got us thinking about the elite defenders of the past. And it got us thinking about which players from old Steelers’ teams and we decided to rank the five we’d love to have for this season.
5-Mean Joe Greene | Defensive line
A lot of old school fans will probably view Mean Joe Greene so low as blasphemy. If we are ranking the best defensive players of all time, we are having a different discussion about where Greene lands. But for this season in the role he’d play he can’t get higher than five.
4-Mel Blount | Cornerback
Few cornerbacks struck fear in the hearts of opposing wide receivers the way Mel Blount did. He had elite NFL size and was an absolute bully to opposing players. He might have to scale back his level of physicality for today’s game but his presence would be welcome.
3-Kevin Greene | Linebacker
There is some debate about who the best pass rusher in Steelers’ history is but for my money it’ll always be Kevin Greene. Greene only spent three seasons with the Steelers but he was absolutely dominant. It would be tremendous to get Greene lined up opposite T.J. Watt, just terrorizing quarterbacks.
2-Troy Polamalu | Safety
Few players in NFL history could impact a game on defense the way Troy Polamalu could. He was a safety by name but during the course of the game was everything from a man cornerback to pass-rushing linebacker and everything in between. A strong case could be made for Polamalu at No. 1 on this list.
1-Rod Woodson | Defensive back
The reason we give Rod Woodson the nod over Polamalu here is because of his ability to absolutely dominate as a coverage cornerback. He and Joe Haden paired up with be hands down the best tandem in the league and make the rest of the defense so much better. Not to mention Woods was an elite kick and punt returner.
