Joe Greene

Charles Edward Greene, famous as "Mean Joe Greene", is a retired professional football player who spent his entire career as a defensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He was recognized for being the cornerstone of the famed "Steel Curtain" defense that dominated the NFL in the 1970s. Greene was born in Temple, Texas on September 24, 1946.

Greene was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers as the 4th overall pick in the 1969 NFL draft. His early drafting resulted in a newspaper headline that asked Who's Joe Greene?, owing to his relative obscurity in the light of OJ Simpson and George Kunz. The rhetorical question was immediately answered when Greene catapulted into the superstar status in his first season as a rookie, becoming a Pro Bowler, an All-Pro, and the 1969 NFL Defensive Rookie that same year.

Although the results were not instant, the 1969 Steelers team became the turning point of the once-moribund franchise, with Greene, LC Greenwood (who was also drafted by the Steelers in 1969), and Hall of Fame head coach Chuck Noll. Greene, along with Noll, were the catalysts that started the Steelers dynasty that would rule during the 70's.

College Career

Before his NFL career, "Mean Joe" Greene had an outstanding college football career at North Texas State University (now the University of North Texas) (1966-1968), assisting the team to a 23-5-1 record during his 3 seasons with them. In his 29 games at defensive tackle, North Texas State held the opposition to 2,507 yards gained on 1,276 rushes: a per carry average of less than two yards per attempt. His collegiate coach, Rod Rust, said of the 1968 consensus All-America, "There are two factors behind Joe's success. First, he has the ability to make the big defensive play and turn the tempo of a game around. Second, he has the speed to be an excellent pursuit player." A pro scout said, "He's tough and mean and comes to hit people. He has good killer instincts. He's mobile and hostile."

The North Texas mascot, the Mean Green, is named after him. In 1984, he was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame. In 2006 was voted to the East-West Shrine Game Hall of Fame.

Pro Football Career

In 1969, he was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 4th pick of the NFL draft and spent his entire career with them until his retirement in 1981. When Joe Greene was drafted, a newspaper headline asked Who's Joe Greene? The question was quickly answered as Greene became so good, that teams double-teamed, and even triple-teamed, him throughout his entire career.

After he was drafted Greene quickly established himself as a dominant defensive player. He was strong, quick and intense. He was the NFL's rookie of the year in 1969, even though he played on a poor Steelers team that went 1-13 and had a long standing reputation of being a doormat for other NFL teams. But that was also Chuck Noll's first year as a coach for the Steelers, and the Steelers quickly improved over the next few seasons. Greene later admitted that he was upset with being drafted by the Steelers due to their long history of losing. He showed his displeasure on the field.

In his early years with the Steelers, Greene was at times uncontrollable and often let his temper get the best of him. At one time during a 1975 game against the rival Cleveland Browns at Cleveland Municipal Stadium in which the Steelers won decisively 42-6, Greene repeatedly kicked Browns lineman Bob McKay in the groin while McKay was lying on the ground. Another incident had Greene snap the ball away from the center while the opposing team was lining up for a play. He had no tolerance for losing, and the team veterans quickly took notice. He said that he was bigger than most, but neither the strongest nor the fastest, but put his desire to win in front of anybody. His desire to win rallied the veterans around him and with great drafts along with superb coaching the Steelers franchise soon began to undergo a dramatic makeover. Joe Greene was credited as the cornerstone of the great Steelers dynasty and perhaps the most important player in team history.

Greene was the leader and cornerstone of the Steel Curtain defense that won four Super Bowls in the 1970s. He was twice recognized as the NFL defensive player of the year in 1972 and 1974. He, along, with other members of the Steelers' front four (L.C. Greenwood, Dwight White and Ernie Holmes) even appeared on the cover of Time magazine. That defense held NFL MVP Fran Tarkenton and the Vikings offense scoreless in Super Bowl IX (the Vikings only scored on a blocked punt, for which they missed the extra point), the only time that has occurred in Super Bowl history. It was also Greene's best championship performance, when he became the first player ever to record an interception, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery in a single Super Bowl. He went to the Pro Bowl 10 times during his career.

Greene is also well-known for the "stunt 4-3" defense in which he would line up at an angle, between the center and guard, and would explode into the line taking up 2-3 blockers. He started doing this sometime in the 1974 season, and while it cut down on the number of sacks he racked up it freed up his other defensive teammates like middle linebacker Jack Lambert to make tackles with ease.

After leading the Steelers to another Super Bowl win after the 1975 season over the Dallas Cowboys in Super Bowl X, Greene missed the first several games of the 1976 season with a back injury. The Steelers started off the season 1-4 and looked like they would not make the playoffs. Quarterback Terry Bradshaw also got injured and was replaced by rookie Mike Kruczek. The season looked lost. But Greene and the Steelers defense carried the Steelers to nine straight wins and the playoffs. In what was probably the greatest NFL defense in the modern era, the 1976 Steelers held opponents to an average of less than 10 points per game (138 points over 14 games). During their nine-game winning streak, the Steelers defense recorded five shutouts, another modern record, and gave up a total of just 28 points (roughly 3 points per game). The defense allowed only two touchdowns over nine games.

Ten of the eleven starters on that 1976 Steelers team were players who made the Pro Bowl at least once in their career (eight starters made the Pro Bowl after the 1976 season). Middle linebacker Jack Lambert had, along with Greene, become the emotional leader of the defense and over the next several years became the dominant player at his position while Greene continued to perform at an all-pro level, becoming a 5-time All-Pro (1972-74,77,79) and in 1969 receiving the first of his 10 Pro Bowl invitations. He retired after the 1981 season after 13 years in the league.

His spot on the team was technically not replaced: the Steelers switched to a 3-4 defensive alignment for the 1982 season, which has only one nose tackle as opposed to two defensive tackles, giving the extra spot to a second middle linebacker. The team has used the 3-4 alignment since Greene's retirement.

His end stats were 181 games, 78.5 sacks (unofficially, as sacks were not an official statistic until 1982) and 16 fumble recoveries.

Mean Joe Greene #75
Defensive Tackle

Greene was the cornerstone of the Steel Curtain defense that won Super Bowls IX, X, XIII, and XIV. The defensive line was composed of Mean Joe Greene (defensive tackle), L.C. Greenwood (defensive end), Ernie Holmes (defensive tackle) and Dwight White (defensive end).

The 1976 season was the best season for Pittsburgh. After Pittsburgh started 1-4, the Steel Curtain took over, shutting out the opposition 5 times including 3 successively, and they didn't allow a single touchdown in 8 of the next nine games. So complete was the defense that during this 9-game stretch, the Steel Curtain only allowed a total of 2 TDs and 5 field goals.

Super Bowl IX was even more spectacular; it featured a head-on collision between two legendary NFL defenses: the Steel Curtain against the Purple People Eaters. The Minnesota Vikings offense was shutout. Minnesota's only score was on a blocked punt, and the Steelers defense blocked the point after attempt.

Coca Cola

Film and Television

Greene made a number of television and film appearances:

• The Black Six (1974) as Kevin Washington
• Horror High (1974) as the coach's buddy, a policeman
• Lady Cocoa (1975)
• Fighting Back: The Story of Rocky Bleier (1980TV) as a Steeler player
• Smokey and the Bandit II (1980) as himself
• ...All the Marbles (1981) as himself
• The Steeler and the Pittsburgh Kid (1981TV) as himself
• SCTV in the episode "Battle of the PBS Stars" as himself