5 most underappreciated Steelers defensive players since 2000

Steelers Defensive Player No. 1: Aaron Smith

Aaron Smith is the most underrated Steelers player over the last 20 years. Smith was a fourth-round pick out of Northern Colorado in 1999 and spent his entire 13-year career in Pittsburgh.

He was named to the Pro Bowl in 2004 and is a two-time Super Bowl Champion. Smith amassed: 44 sacks, 84 tackles for loss, 481 tackles, and 21 pass deflections in his career.

Smith has strong career numbers, but his statistics are even more impressive when considering he was a 3-4 defensive end, whose role was to eat up double teams in order to create free looks for the outside linebackers, such as James Harrison, Joey Porter, and Lamarr Woodley. Smith was dominant against the run, and his ability to take on multiple blockers at once is one reason why so many Steelers edge rushers have excelled in recent years.

Smith helped anchor a defensive line that featured Casey Hampton and one of Brett Kiesel or Kimo von Oelhoffen throughout much of his career but receives far less recognition than Kiesel or Hampton, despite there being a legitimate argument that he is the best of the group.

7 greatest Pittsburgh Steelers of the Ben Roethlisberger era

The Pittsburgh Steelers are one of the NFL's most storied franchises, and since Ben Roethlisberger was drafted in 2004, they've had some all-time greats.

While Smith wasn’t a player who racked up the stat sheet, he was a crucial player to Pittsburgh’s defense throughout his career, who helped open up opportunities for others, and it’s for that reason that he’s the most underrated Steelers defender since 2000.