Greg Lloyd

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Greg Lloyd (Born:May 26, 1965 in Miami, Florida) is a former NFL linebacker for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was named to five Pro Bowls and 3 NFL All-Pro teams during this time.

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[edit] College career

Greg Lloyd attended Fort Valley State University, where he was a three time All-Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection, a three time team Defensive MVP, and as a senior, he was the SIAC Player of the Year, and a first team Sheridan All-American selection.

[edit] Career

Lloyd was injured his first year (1987), and most of the 1988 season, but became a starter during the 1989 season at outside linebacker where he excelled. He became the emotional and fiery leader of the Steelers defense after the retirement of inside linebacker David Little. Lloyd teamed with cornerback Rod Woodson to give the Steelers two of the most dynamic and dominating defensive players in the game. Both Lloyd and Woodson were drafted in 1987 by then Steelers coach Chuck Noll.

Lloyd remained the starter through the 1997 season, missing almost the entire 1996 season with a knee injury and several games in 1997 due to a staph infection. He was named to five Pro Bowls and 3 NFL All-Pro teams during this time, and was widely recognized as the top all-around outside linebacker during the 1990s. Lloyd left the Steelers in 1998 and played for the Carolina Panthers before retiring. A true leader and student of the game, Lloyd continued to impact the Steelers defense while injured from the sideline by teaching young linebackers Chad Brown and Jason Gildon the finer points of Steelers linebacking tradition.

Lloyd has a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. Lloyd is 6'2" and weighs 226 pounds. He played in Super Bowl XXX. He is also well-known for using an expletive in a nationally televised interview after Pittsburgh defeated the Indianapolis Colts in the 1995 AFC Championship.

Lloyd never got along with the media, he was impatient and intolerant with the media. This, along with his career-ending injuries, led many to believe that he lost votes for the NFL 1990s Team of the Decade selection in which other Steelers linebackers like Levon Kirkland and Kevin Greene were selected even though Lloyd was always considered the top linebacker and defensive leader of the team. Despite not being popular with the press, Lloyd was immensely popular with the fans and the front office, who considered him a throwback player. Lloyd's number 95 jersey was one of the top-selling jerseys among Steeler fans. It was either Steelers President Dan Rooney or Director of Operations Tom Donahue who once said of Greg Lloyd, ""He was one of the Best, not just one of the Steelers' best but one of the best in the league. Greg could play in any era. He has the makeup, whether it's in 1998 or 1938. he's just a football player."

Lloyd was notorious for wearing a ratty, old t-shirt at practice and under his game jersey which read "I Wasn't Hired For My Disposition".

[edit] Legal trouble

In 2003, Lloyd was charged with aggravated assault after he supposedly shoved a pistol in his son's mouth for poor grades in a 2001 incident. The trial resulted in a mistrial in 2004. Lloyd is also going through a divorce with his wife, Rhonda. In January 2003, Lloyd was charged with simple assault after pointing a gun at his wife's head. He pleaded no contest and received probation. In June 2003, Lloyd was charged with aggravated stalking for taking a package that belonged to his estranged wife from a Mail Boxes, Etc. store. The case is still pending.

[edit] External links

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