Greene pauses and adds, "It saddens me a great deal. But what can you say? This is life."

Seventeen former Steelers have died since 2000 before the age of 59. This is a statistical anomaly that no one is sure what to ascribe to other than sheer coincidence. There has been no pattern that would lend a clue to why the Steelers have been so beset. Some have had heart conditions. Others have been the victims of accidents. One committed suicide. Nine were in their 50s. Five were in their 40s. And three were in their 30s. "I think this has just been a quirk of fate," says Joe Gordon, a Steelers executive from 1969 to '98. "I have never heard an explanation for it. This is just something that has focused on this particular group of people."

Here is how they died:

* Heart conditions claimed eight of them. In the case of quarterback Joe Gilliam (49) and center Mike Webster (50), there were contributing factors that were compelling. Gilliam had a history of cocaine and heroin abuse and Webster had sustained brain damage from butting heads in the trenches. Both endured periods of homelessness before they died. Guard Jim Clack (58) died of a heart attack after a 4-year battle with cancer. Defensive tackle Steve Furness (49), guard Tyrone McGriff (42) and cornerbacks Dave Brown (52) and Ray Oldham (54) also succumbed to heart seizures. Heart arrhythmia contributed to the death of linebacker David Little (46), who was pinned beneath a barbell and suffocated.

* Other illnesses claimed another four. In addition to White - who developed a blood clot that settled in his lungs after back surgery - two others died of cancer: wide receiver Ron Shanklin (55) and former Temple tackle James Parrish (35). Wide receiver Theo Bell (52) died of kidney disease and scleroderma.

* Accidents claimed four others. In addition to Holmes - who apparently fell asleep at the wheel - two others were claimed in traffic-related incidents: tackle Justin Strzelczyk (36) hit a truck after leading police on a high-speed chase; and linebacker Fred Small (39) was killed in a motorcycle crash. But the oddest accident was the one that befell guard Steve Courson (50), who had been one of the first players to admit to using steroids. Courson died when a tree fell on him.

* Suicide accounted for the death of one. Guard Terry Long (45) ended what had been a troubled life by drinking antifreeze.

"None of it seems to have any rhyme or reason to it," says former Steelers tight end Randy Grossman, a product of Haverford High and Temple. "Had Courson died of the medical abuses he indulged in at one point in his life, that is something altogether different from having a tree fall on you. And Ernie Holmes. I had been expecting Ernie Holmes to drop over dead for years. Because he was so big. Then he gets stomach-bypass surgery, loses that weight and he dies in a car crash."

For old Steelers such as linebacker Andy Russell - who has two Super Bowl rings - the bond that exists with his teammates just seems to get stronger with each death. Russell broke in with the Steelers in 1963 but became a part of the rebuilding effort by coach Chuck Noll. He remembers how Noll looked at the roomful of players and told them, "The reason you guys aren't winning is because you are not very good." Only five players who were there that day survived the housecleaning - including Russell and his close friend, center Ray Mansfield. Mansfield died in 1996 at age 55 of a heart attack.

"He was on a hike with his son in the Grand Canyon when he collapsed," says Russell, who adds that he and Mansfield had done the hike twice together. "I think in the case of Ray, what happened could have had something to do with the fact that players of our era were taught to play through pain. You played with torn cartilage and broken fingers. Heck, Ray once played with a broken neck. The point is, I think a person like that would be prone to overlook any symptoms he had and just push on."

Former tackle Tunch Ilkin says "each of us lose a small piece of ourselves" whenever an old teammate dies. Ilkin, now a broadcaster, says that "something very, very special happens between 45 men who spend so much time together. You build friendships that endure forever." Ilkin attended the dinner held by Harris in honor of White and remembers that it was uplifting. Ilkin says, "When you bleed together and laugh and cry together, there is an intimacy that forms. And to lose someone who had been a part of that with you is unbelievably sad."

Grossman echoes that. "A bond forms from significantly sacrificing yourself physically for each other," he says. "Maybe policemen experience that, firefighters and soldiers probably even to a greater degree because the risks are so much more."

But there are potential hazards to a long playing career in the NFL and they have been well-documented. For years players had poor diets, which can lead to heart disease and other ailments. And a study by Dr. Bennet Omalu, a neuropathologist at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, found evidence of trauma in the brains of some former players - including Webster, Strzelczyk and Long. Grossman just says he feels like a kid again, which is to say: "I hurt all over."

"When you are young - young and dumb - you have no concept of what the eventual price will be," says Grossman. "And I think for the great majority, even if they knew what the eventual price would be, they would still do it."

So when people ask Grossman: "Do you miss playing?"

He always tells them: "I miss being young." *