There is a commonly held truth in the NFL that if you have a player who can consistently hit the other team’s quarterback, your entire defense will be better. This has always been true of the Pittsburgh Steelers who have had some of the best pass-rushing outside linebackers of all time on their rosters over the last handful of decades.
But in terms of just pass rushers, where do the best of the Steelers stand? The 33rd Team put together their list of the 10 best pass rushers of all time, and two Steelers made the cut.
Checking in at No. 8, they have T.J. Watt. Already the franchise sack leader and still not 30 years old, Watt is the best all-around defender in the league right now. He’s won Defensive Player of the Year, holds the single-season sack record along with the guy who is No. 2 on this list and is the only player in NFL history to lead the league in sacks three different times.
At No. 5 is Kevin Greene. Technically Greene only played a small portion of his Hall of Fame career with Pittsburgh but in just three seasons he was named an All-Pro twice and had 35.5 sacks.
We have no qualms with any ratings on this list and doubt we would change much of anything. But if Watt can keep playing at this current level for a handful more seasons, he’s going to keep climbing up this list.