Sorry, Terry Bradshaw, Big Ben and Jerome Bettis ... NONE of you are the greatest Steeler of all-time -- so says Rod Woodson, who tells TMZ Sports that honor goes to Mean Joe Greene!
"Man, I'm just thinking Mean Joe," the legendary Pittsburgh defensive back says. "He's so classic!"
It clearly pains Woodson to make the choice -- there are a LOT of candidates ... everyone from Lynn Swann to Franco Harris to Troy Polamalu to Jack Lambert all has a legit claim to the title.
But, Rod says it just has to be Greene ... telling us, "He had the iconic Coca-Cola commercial throwing it to the kid. He was a heck of a -- heck of a -- player. He was really a good coach too!"
Woodson added, "If you think about it, the Steelers have only retired one number, and it's Mean Joe Greene. That's saying a lot."
FYI, Greene truly is an NFL legend ... he was a 10-time Pro Bowler, 4-time All-Pro and 4-time Super Bowl champ who won Defensive Player of the Year honors TWICE!!
As for the G.O.A.T. QB of Steelers ... Woodson at least threw his pal Bradshaw a bone there -- saying even though it's close, he's got the OG TB12 ahead of Roethlisberger in that debate.