While they were surveying NFL coaches to find out which players were the dirtiest, ESPN.com also asked them who they thought were the smartest offensive (non-QB) and defensive players in the league.

Hines Ward of the Steelers and Zach Thomas of the Cowboys came out on top of the voting. While Rodney Harrison dominated the voting for dirtiest player, neither Ward nor Thomas dominated their respective voting. Ward won four of the 30 votes cast, narrowly edging Kevin Mawae, Jeff Saturday and Randy Moss who finished in a three-way tie with three votes apiece.

Ward’s always been known as a heady player and centers are in charge of running the line, so no surprises there. It’s a bit surprising to see Moss do so well in the rankings, though. He’s so physically gifted that it’s easy to overlook other facets of his game. Furthermore, you wouldn’t expect coaches to credit the brains of a player who earned the ire of many for his lackadaisical approach while in Minnesota and Oakland.

On the defensive side, Thomas got six votes while another middle linebacker, Ray Lewis, finished with four. John Lynch and Ed Reed each received three votes.