Kevin Greene's 160 sacks secured a place among the game's best, but his Hall of Fame induction speech Saturday showed the side of the man that lit up locker rooms and made teammates lifelong believers.
Effervescent. Fire-breather. Hilarious.
And an all-time great.
Greene softly brushed the mane on his Hall of Fame bust, then delivered a speech ranging from humorous to heartfelt inside Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.
"I am side by side with Brett Favre for eternity," Greene joked to fellow inductee Favre. "Right where a linebacker needs to be."
Greene was always close to quarterbacks, recording double-digit-sack seasons in 10 of his last 12 years in the league, including three productive years with the Pittsburgh Steelers during 1993-95.
Yes, Greene was blessed with talent. But during his speech, he outlined how life as a military child shaped him, how his father and brother helped him evolve.
His learned Army values: "Be men of honor, have integrity, be respectful, have an attitude of selfless service," he said.
Greene played with an edge to overcome walk-on status at Auburn, turning that limited role into five Pro Bowls in the NFL.
And he played with Bo Jackson, which elicited a great one-liner.
"Bo, he ran my ass over," Greene said. "He ran a lot of asses over."
As for former teammate Jackie Slater, the fellow Hall of Famer "carried a Bible in one hand and a switchblade in the other," Greene said.
Terrible Towels were twirling as Greene spoke. Greene identifies himself as a Steeler first despite playing only three of his 15 years there. Greene gave a shout-out to "Blitzburgh," where he said he felt unblockable behind quality coaches and teammates. His coordinator was Dom Capers, who introduced him.
"Rich history of lining up and kicking ass and winning -- it was awesome to be a part of that," Greene said of the Steelers. "I was in football heaven."
Greene's speech reminded us how much fun he must have had playing the game, which is why so many former Steelers were so pumped for the man they affectionately call 'KG.'