Editing Joe Greene (section)

{{Short description|American football player and coach (born 1946)}}
{{other people|Joe Greene|Joseph Greene (disambiguation)}}
{{good article}}
{{Use American English|date=April 2020}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Infobox NFL biography
| name         = Joe Greene
| image        = Mean Joe Greene 1975.JPG
| alt          = A man with an Afro and a beard in a black football uniform with 75 written in white
| caption      = Greene with the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1975
| position     = [[Defensive tackle]]
| number       = 75
| birth_date   = {{Birth date and age|1946|9|24|mf=y}}
| birth_place  = [[Elgin, Texas]], U.S.
| death_date   =
| death_place  = 
| high_school  = [[Dunbar High School (Temple, Texas)|Dunbar]] {{avoid wrap|(Temple, Texas)}}
| height_ft    = 6
| height_in    = 4
| weight_lbs   = 275
| draftyear    = 1969
| draftround   = 1
| draftpick    = 4
| college      = [[North Texas Mean Green football|North Texas State]] (1966–1968)
| pastteams    = * [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] ({{NFL Year|1969|1981}})
| pastcoaching = * Pittsburgh Steelers ({{NFL Year|1987|1991}}) <br> Defensive line coach
* [[Miami Dolphins]] (1991–{{NFL Year|1995}}) <br> Defensive line coach
* [[Arizona Cardinals]] ({{NFL Year|1996|2003}}) <br> Assistant coach
| highlights   = ; As a player
* 4× [[List of Super Bowl champions|Super Bowl champion]] ([[Super Bowl IX|IX]], [[Super Bowl X|X]], [[Super Bowl XIII|XIII]], [[Super Bowl XIV|XIV]])
* 2× [[AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year|NFL Defensive Player of the Year]] (1972, 1974)
* [[NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year]] (1969)
* [[Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year|NFL Man of the Year]] (1979)
* 5× First-team [[All-Pro]] ([[1972 All-Pro Team|1972]]–[[1974 All-Pro Team|1974]], [[1977 All-Pro Team|1977]], [[1979 All-Pro Team|1979]])
* 3× Second-team All-Pro ([[1971 All-Pro Team|1971]], [[1975 All-Pro Team|1975]], [[1976 All-Pro Team|1976]])       
* 10× [[Pro Bowl]] ([[1970 Pro Bowl|1969]]–[[1977 Pro Bowl|1976]], [[1979 Pro Bowl|1978]], [[1980 Pro Bowl|1979]])
* [[NFL 1970s All-Decade Team]]
* [[NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team]]
* [[NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team]]
* [[Pittsburgh Steelers All-Time Team]]
* [[Pittsburgh Steelers#Hall of Honor|Pittsburgh Steelers Hall of Honor]]
* [[Pittsburgh Steelers#Retired uniform numbers|Pittsburgh Steelers No. 75]] retired
* [[Pittsburgh Pro Football Hall of Fame]]
* Consensus [[College Football All-America Team|All-American]] ([[1968 College Football All-America Team|1968]])
* [[North Texas Mean Green football#Retired numbers|North Texas Mean Green No. 75]] retired
| statlabel1   = Games played
| statvalue1   = 181
| statlabel2   = Games started
| statvalue2   = 172
| statlabel3   = [[Fumble]] recoveries
| statvalue3   = 16
| statlabel4   = [[Interception]]s
| statvalue4   = 1
| statlabel5   = [[Quarterback sack|Sacks]]
| statvalue5   = 77.5
| pfr          = GreeJo02
| HOF          = joe-greene
| CollegeHOF   = 1858 
}}

'''Charles Edward Greene''' (born September 24, 1946), better known as "'''Mean'''" '''Joe Greene''', is an American former professional [[American football|football]] [[defensive tackle]] who played for the [[Pittsburgh Steelers]] of the [[National Football League]] (NFL) from 1969 to 1981. A recipient of two [[AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year|NFL Defensive Player of the Year]] awards, five first-team [[All-Pro]] selections, and ten [[Pro Bowl]] appearances, Greene is widely considered to be one of the greatest defensive linemen to play in the NFL. He was noted for his leadership, fierce competitiveness, and intimidating style of play for which he earned his nickname.

Born and raised in [[Temple, Texas]], Greene attended North Texas State University—now [[University of North Texas]]—where he earned consensus [[College Football All-America Team|All-America]] honors as a senior playing for the [[North Texas State Mean Green football|North Texas State Eagles]]. He was selected by the Steelers fourth overall in the [[1969 NFL draft]] and made an immediate impact with the team, as he was named the NFL's [[NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year|Defensive Rookie of the Year]]. Greene is credited with providing the foundation upon which Steelers coach [[Chuck Noll]] turned the dismal franchise into a [[Dynasty (sports)|sports dynasty]]. He was the centerpiece of the "[[Steel Curtain]]" defense that led Pittsburgh to four [[Super Bowl]] championships in a six-year span.

Throughout his career, Greene was one of the most dominant defensive players in the NFL, able to overpower opposing [[Lineman (gridiron football)#Offensive line|offensive linemen]] with ease and disrupt blocking. Former teammate [[Andy Russell (American football)|Andy Russell]] called Greene "unquestionably the NFL's best player in the seventies". He is a member of the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]] and the [[College Football Hall of Fame]], and his number 75 jersey is one of only three [[retired number|retired]] by the Steelers. Greene is also well known for his appearance in the "[[Hey Kid, Catch!]]" [[Coca-Cola]] commercial, which aired during [[Super Bowl XIV]] and solidified his reputation as a "tough football player who's a nice guy".<ref name=Emery>{{cite news|last1=Emery|first1=Mark|title=NFL legend 'Mean Joe' Greene reunited with co-star from classic 1979 Coke commercial|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/joe-greene-reunited-costar-classic-coke-ad-article-1.2512868|access-date=November 11, 2016|work=New York Daily News|date=January 28, 2016|archive-date=November 12, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161112025952/http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/joe-greene-reunited-costar-classic-coke-ad-article-1.2512868|url-status=live}}</ref>