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Kevin Greene

Outside Linebackers

Biography

Joined Packers Feb. 3, 2009.
Has tutored LB Clay Matthews over the past two seasons as he became the first Packer since RB John Brockington (1971-72) to be selected to the Pro Bowl in each of his first two seasons in the NFL.
Under his guidance in 2009, Matthews (10 sacks) and LB Brad Jones (four sacks) became the first Green Bay rookie tandem to each record four-plus sacks in the same season.
Finished a 15-year playing career (1985-99) ranked third all-time in sacks and first among linebackers with 160.
Was a five-time Pro Bowler (1989, ’94, ’95, ’96, ’98) and two-time first-team All-Pro selection (’94, ’96), leading the league in sacks both of those years.
Played for current Green Bay defensive coordinator Dom Capers with two teams, Pittsburgh and Carolina.
Served as a captain in a 16-year career in the Army Reserve.

Kevin Greene enters his third season with the Packers in 2011 as outside linebackers coach, his first full-time NFL coaching job after 15 years as a standout player.

Named to his position by Head Coach Mike McCarthy on Feb. 3, 2009, Greene brings a wealth of experience at the outside linebacker spot and has played a key role in teaching that position in the Packers’ 3-4 defensive scheme the past two seasons.

In 2010, Clay Matthews continued his standout play under Greene as he earned Pro Bowl recognition for the second straight season, the first Packer to be honored in each of his first two years in the NFL since RB John Brockington (1971-72). Matthews led the team with 13½ sacks, including back-to-back three-sack games to start the season, on his way to becoming the first Green Bay linebacker to earn first-team All-Pro honors from The Associated Press since Tim Harris in 1989.

After opening-day starter Brad Jones and veteran backup Brady Poppinga were lost for the season with injuries sustained in Weeks 7 and 6, respectively, rookie free agent Frank Zombo moved into the starting lineup opposite Matthews. Under Greene’s guidance, Zombo started eight contests and registered 67 tackles, four sacks and two forced fumbles.

When Zombo missed the final three regular-season games and three playoff contests with a knee injury, midseason free-agent acquisition Erik Walden stepped into a starting role down the stretch. Walden recorded a career-high three sacks in Green Bay’s playoff berth-clinching win over Chicago in Week 17, earning NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors for the performance.

In his first season as a coach in 2009, Greene was part of a staff that guided the Packers defense to a No. 2 overall ranking in the league, the highest ranking since the ’96 team finished as the No. 1 defense.

Under Greene’s direction, Matthews registered 10 sacks, the most by a Packers rookie since the statistic became official in 1982. He was selected to the Pro Bowl, the first Green Bay rookie to earn that honor since WR James Lofton in 1978, and also led all NFL rookies with three forced fumbles.

Veteran Aaron Kampman made the transition from DE to LOLB under Greene, and recorded 3½ sacks and 28 QB hits (second on the team) in nine games before sustaining a season-ending knee injury in Week 11. Greene tutored another rookie, Jones, as he was inserted into Kampman’s starting spot for the rest of the season. Jones posted four sacks, all in the final month of the season, to give the Packers their first rookie tandem with four-plus sacks in franchise history.

As a 3-4 outside linebacker, Greene posted 160 career sacks for four different teams, ranking him third on the NFL’s all-time list behind Bruce Smith and Reggie White and first all-time among linebackers. In 15 seasons (1985-99), he was a five-time Pro Bowl selection and two-time first-team All-Pro pick by AP. He recorded 10 double-digit sack seasons, which ranks third in league history behind Smith and White. Greene led his team in sacks 11 times and the league twice, and played in six conference championship games and one Super Bowl (XXX). He has been a semifinalist in the Pro Football Hall of Fame balloting each of the past four years.

Greene’s pro career began in 1985 with the Los Angeles Rams, where he played his first eight seasons, six under future Packers defensive coordinator Fritz Shurmur (1985-90). He posted back-to-back seasons with a career-best 16½ sacks in 1988 and 1989. The latter year, he made his first Pro Bowl and was an AP second-team All-Pro choice.

In 1993, Greene went to the Pittsburgh Steelers, where he played for current Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers the first two of his three seasons there. He was named first-team All-Pro and went to the Pro Bowl in 1994 with 14 sacks, tops in the league. In 1995, he went to his third Pro Bowl and helped lead the Steelers to an appearance in Super Bowl XXX.

In 1996, Greene reunited with Capers, who was then the head coach for the Carolina Panthers. He led the league in sacks for the second time, with 14½, and posted five consecutive multi-sack games. He was a first-team All-Pro for the second time and a Pro Bowler for the third straight year and fourth overall in helping the Panthers, a second-year expansion team, reach the NFC Championship Game at Green Bay.

Greene then spent one season with the San Francisco 49ers (1997) before returning to Carolina for his final two years (1998-99). In 1998, Greene tallied 15 sacks and a career-best two interceptions, earning his fifth Pro Bowl nod.

In addition to the 160 sacks, Greene finished his career with 26 fumble recoveries, tied for fourth all-time, and five interceptions. He had three returns for touchdowns (two fumbles, one INT) and also posted three safeties.

A walk-on at Auburn, Greene played two seasons (1983-84) for the Tigers and led the Southeastern Conference in sacks as a senior with 11. He was selected in both the NFL Draft, by the Rams in the fifth round (113th overall), and in the USFL territorial draft, by the Birmingham Stallions.

While earning a degree in criminal justice at Auburn, Greene also completed ROTC training and served as a captain in a 16-year career in the Army Reserve. He served his military commitments during the offseasons while playing in the NFL.

Greene was a two-year starter and honorable mention all-conference selection as a senior at Granite City South High (Ill.). He also played basketball and was a high jumper for the track team.

After his playing career ended, Greene worked in real estate and as a summer NFL coaching intern with five different clubs, including one in 2006 with Miami, where Capers was the Dolphins’ defensive coordinator. His most recent coaching internship came in 2008 with the eventual Super Bowl champion Steelers.

Greene was born in Schenectady, N.Y. He and his wife, Tara, have a son, Gavin, and a daughter, Gabrielle.

Joined Packers Feb. 3, 2009.
Has tutored LB Clay Matthews over the past two seasons as he became the first Packer since RB John Brockington (1971-72) to be selected to the Pro Bowl in each of his first two seasons in the NFL.
Under his guidance in 2009, Matthews (10 sacks) and LB Brad Jones (four sacks) became the first Green Bay rookie tandem to each record four-plus sacks in the same season.
Finished a 15-year playing career (1985-99) ranked third all-time in sacks and first among linebackers with 160.
Was a five-time Pro Bowler (1989, ’94, ’95, ’96, ’98) and two-time first-team All-Pro selection (’94, ’96), leading the league in sacks both of those years.
Played for current Green Bay defensive coordinator Dom Capers with two teams, Pittsburgh and Carolina.
Served as a captain in a 16-year career in the Army Reserve.

Kevin Greene enters his third season with the Packers in 2011 as outside linebackers coach, his first full-time NFL coaching job after 15 years as a standout player.

Greene was a two-year starter and honorable mention all-conference selection as a senior at Granite City South High (Ill.). He also played basketball and was a high jumper for the track team.

Greene was born in Schenectady, N.Y. He and his wife, Tara, have a son, Gavin, and a daughter, Gabrielle.