And now, we get to the good stuff. After three articles making fun of the list of the 100 greatest Bears created in honor of the team’s 100th anniversary by big brained football guys Don Pierson and Dan Pompei, we’ve reached the final 25. Surely, there’s nothing to make fun of here, right?
Here are the other What’s wrong with this list(s)? 100-76, 75-51, 50-25
24. Joe Fortunato, LB, 1955-1966
You might think Joe is Fortunate(o) to be on the list1, but first off he’s from Mingo Junction, Ohio which should get him on it just for that name, but he also was pretty damned good. He made the NFL All-Decade team for the 50s, he was named one of the 300 greatest players in NFL history (a list with such an arbitrary number that even Bill Simmons would be proud of it) and he was was a six-time All-Pro, oh and he was on the 1963 championship team, and we know how Don and Dan felt about that.
23. George McAfee, HB/DB, 1940-1941, 1945-1950
McAfee was timed at 9.7 seconds on the 100-yard (the metric system apparently hadn’t been invented yet) in 1940. That’s almost certainly bullshit. But they timed things back then with some guy just saying “One Mississippi, two Mississippi, three Mississippi…” He certainly was fast, though. In his second season in the NFL he averaged 7.3 yards per carry and scored 12 touchdowns in 11 games, and he did it by scoring six on the ground, catching three, a punt return for a TD, a kickoff return for a TD and an interception return for a TD. Not too shabby. He didn’t get drafted into WWII, so he volunteered and joined the Navy. For his career he intercepted 25 passes. He wasn’t the same player after the war and fumbled 11 times in 1948. Even Rashaan Salaam would have been impressed by that.
22. George Connor, T/LB, 1948-1955
George Connor took a very Irish path to greatness. He went from Chicago’s De La Salle High, to Holy Cross to the Navy, to Notre Dame to the Bears. He basically invented the modern outside linebacker position with the Bears. He started his career as a tackle, and then George Halas got the bright idea to have Connor stand up on the end of the line and destroy everybody. He was a five time All-Pro and is in the College and Pro Football Hall of Fames.
21. Joe Stydahar, T, 1936-1942, 1945-1946
“Jumbo Joe” was the first ever Bears draft pick. He got the most votes for the 1937 All-Pro team, meaning he was the de facto NFL MVP, had the second most in 1939, and he played on three Bears NFL championship teams. He’s in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and coached the LA Rams to the 1950 NFL Championship.
20. Devin Hester, KR/PR/WR, 2006-2013
Oh, hell yes. Few things have been more fun as a Bears fan in the past 20 years as every single time Devin Hester dropped back to field a punt or a kickoff, or the occasional really long field goal try. To say he was electric is a vast understatement. He is, without a doubt, the greatest returner in football history. And if you don’t believe me, well, just watch this:
Wide receiver speed, running back strength and the ability to see everybody on the field. He’ll be the first return specialist ever elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame…or I’ll burn the fucking place to the ground.
I also like that whoever made the video put in that Aaron Schatz comment that “it didn’t last” and then you see that after a two year lull, Devin turned it back on. And, it’s not like he ever stopped being a great returner, he couldn’t keep his incredible touchdown pace up, but he was still impacting games, and then he started scoring TDs again.
19. Steve McMichael, DT, 1981-1993
A new generation might only know him from saying “champagne room” on the radio or getting thrown out of a Cubs’ game by Angel Hernandez while singing the seventh inning stretch, but Mongo was more than a colorful personality. He was overshadowed by the guy who lined up next to him at tackle for most of his time with the Bears, Dan Hampton, but pretty much anybody would have been. McMichael was drafted by the Patriots in the third round but cut after his first year, that was the Bears’ gain as he played 13 seasons for them. He was more than a run stuffer, as he recorded 11.5 sacks in 1988.
18. Jay Hilgenberg, C, 1982-1993
A lot of things stand out about Hilgy. He was a terrific player who anchored the Bears’ offensive line for 12 seasons. His brother Joel was a longtime center for the Saints, which amused John Madden so much he claimed the Hilgenberg boys were the only kids in America who grew up playing catch without facing each other. In his rookie season, he wasn’t playing, the NFL players were about to go on strike, and the Bears were terrible. He told his fellow rookie Jim McMahon, “We’re the worst team in the league, and I never play. I’m pretty sure I’m the worst player in football.” He proved to be really, really wrong.
17. Stan Jones, T, 1954-1965
Stan came into the league as an offensive lineman playing guard and tackle. He was an All-Pro at tackle three times, and played in seven Pro Bowls, and in 1962 George Allen decided Stan could help the Bears on defense so he moved him to defensive tackle for four years. That just seems dumb.
16. Bill Hewitt, E, 1932-1936
15. Mike Singletary, LB, 1981-1992
Buddy Ryan called him “fat boy” his first few years in the league. He wasn’t as talented as a guy like Brian Urlacher. But nobody ever disputed who was in charge of the greatest defense of all-time. He routinely broke helmets (his own and guys he was tackling) at Baylor. He played with those crazy eyes. And while he legendarily could not catch a ball, he sure as hell could catch running backs trying to get through the line. In 1984, Eric Dickerson of the Rams broke a tackle of his and scored a touchdown. Dickerson yelled at the Bears’ defense, “I got gas all day! All day!” The next season, on a key fourth and short, Dickerson was met in the hole by Mike Singletary, who planted the much bigger Dickerson for no gain. The Rams’ drive was dead, their last gasp in the NFC Championship game was over and the Bears were going to the Super Bowl. Singletary yelled at Dickerson, “Looks like you are out of gas!” Dickerson pretended he didn’t know what Singletary was talking about.
He knew. He’d just been sent home by the Bears’ Hall of Fame middle linebacker.
14. Brian Urlacher, LB, 2000-2012
He played a lot of safety in college at New Mexico and the assumption when the Bears drafted him in the first round in 2000 was that he’d play outside linebacker. He did, for a while as a rookie, but the middle was his destiny as heir apparent to Bill George, Dick Butkus and Singletary. When Lovie Smith took over as head coach in 2001 Urlacher was the perfect middle linebacker for his Tampa Two. Who the hell else could stuff the run or drop 20 yards the field into pass coverage? He racked up so many tackles that Rick Morrissey accused the Bears of padding his totals. The team challenged Morrissey to review some film and count them himself. He ended up writing that not only were the Bears not inflating Urlacher’s tackle counts, he thought they may have missed a few. Even as NFL players and defenses evolve, it’s going to be a long time before we see anybody play middle linebacker with the degree of athleticism the Brian Urlacher did.
Yes kids, the guy on the hair replacement billboards was a football player once. A really fucking good one.
13. Jim Covert, T, 1983-1990
Covert was the undisputed best player on the great Bears’ offensive line of the mid to late ’80s. Bill Parcells has long maintained that Covert is a no-brainer Hall of Fame selection, if for no other reason, than he was the only left tackle in the league who could block Lawrence Taylor without help. His relatively short career, due to a back injury, seems to be the only thing holding Jimbo out of the Hall of Fame. But it won’t forever. Great recognizes great. And there are plenty of Hall of Fame defenders who keep wondering aloud why he’s not in Canton yet.
12. Richard Dent, DE, 1983-1993, 1995
The Sackman made a liar out of me. He was famous for two things. One, wrecking opposing teams’ passing attacks, and two, “pacing himself” during games. Dent didn’t go full bore every down. In 1994 he was rumored to be leaving the Bears as a free agent, and I told my friends there was no way he would because he was “too lazy to move all of his stuff.” He played 1994 with the Niners. Then he came back and played for the Bears again in 1995. I wasn’t totally wrong, though. He never moved his stuff to San Francisco. An eighth rounder out of Tennessee State, he was a four-time All-Pro, a Super Bowl MVP and probably the greatest draft pick in Bears’ history, given that they selected him in the eighth round.
11. Dan Hampton, DT/DE, 1979-1990
This list says Dan Hampton was the second-best defensive lineman in Bears’ history. With apologies to Doug Atkins, they are wrong. Dan Hampton was the best defensive lineman who has ever lined up in the blue and orange. He was an All-Pro defensive end and an All-Pro defensive tackle. When young and healthy he was a dominant player who could not be game planned against. When older and hobbled by chronic injuries he was a dominant player who could not be game planned against. He had two seasons in which he recorded 11.5 sacks. Once as a defensive end (1980) and once as a tackle (1984). Who does that? He had 12 knee surgeries. How important was he to the Bears’ defense? From 1983-1990 the Bears won 75% of the games he played in and only 33% of the ones he missed. Over that same timeframe they allowed 14 points per game when he played and 23 when he didn’t.
10. Danny Fortmann, G 1936-1943
9. Doug Atkins, DE, 1955-1966
A 6’8 defensive end at a time when he must have looked like an actual giant on the field, Atkins was an incredible athlete. He was literally one of the world’s best high jumpers during his senior season at Tennessee. Drafted in the 1st round by the Browns, the Bears got him two years later for a third and a sixth. Paul Brown made better trades than that one. Atkins was a ten time All-Pro (nine times for the Bears and once for the Saints). He was on two NFL Championship teams with the Bears, 1954 and…of course, 1963.
8. Bulldog Turner, C/LB, 1940-1952
Clyde Turner is not a tough football name, but Bulldog Turner? That’s one you don’t forget. Bulldog played center and linebacker full-time for the glory Bears teams of the ’40s, never leaving the field, and winning four NFL titles and he was named first team All-Pro eight times. The Bears drafted him seventh overall in 1940 and got the Lions fined a whopping (for the time) $5,000 when they found out the Lions tried to recruit Turner by paying for his dental work. Huh? Turner’s teammate George Musso used to ask reporters to think “about how good Bulldog would be if he ever got to rest during games.”
7. Bill George, G/LB, 1952-1965
George is credited with inventing the modern middle linebacker position, and is first in the long line of Bears’ Hall of Famers at the position. Dick Butkus grew up idolizing him and then replaced him in 1965. George was an eight time All-Pro, and yes, he was on the ’63 team. He died in a car accident in Rockford in 1982, probably trying to find a Taco Bell.
6. Mike Ditka, TE, 1961-1966
Admittedly, Da Coach, turned himself into a caricature, but, before he was a bright orange pitchman for anything anyone would pay him to endorse, and before he coached the Bears to a Super Bowl championship, he was the first great pass receiving tight end in NFL history. He’s the last player on this list from the ’63 team (I’m pretty sure every one of his teammates is on it). He was Rookie of the Year in 1961 setting an NFL record at the time for a tight end with 58 receptions and his 12 touchdown catches were the most by any Bears’ rookie ever. He made the Pro Bowl in his first six seasons. He fell out of favor with George Halas during a contract dispute when he said that Halas “threw nickels round like manhole covers.” Halas traded him to the Eagles. After two years in Philly he went to the Cowboys where he was part of the Super Bowl VI champions. He was the first Hall of Fame player to coach a team to a Super Bowl championship and the first person to ever score a touchdown in the Super Bowl and win one as the coach.
5. Gale Sayers, HB, 1965-1971
Being the youngest player ever inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame isn’t what you want. Sayers was an incredibly great player, but for a short time due to a catastrophic knee injury in 1968. He came back and rushed for 1,000 yards in 1969 he was a mere shadow of his former self. His first three and a half seasons in the league he played halfback in a manner that nobody had ever seen before. Nicknamed the Kansas Comet because of his speed, he was seemingly able to cut without slowing down, leaving defenders helpless to contain him. He set an NFL record with six touchdowns in a game against the 49ers in his rookie season. He put up an astounding 2,272 total yards in just 14 games as a rookie and then topped it with 2.440 and a rushing title in his second season. He split carries in his third season with Brian Piccolo and gained only 880 yards but averaged 4.7 per carry and 37.7 yards per punt return. Despite his short career he was a no-brainer Hall of Famer. Had he stayed healthy for a decade, he may well have been the greatest player in NFL history.
This NFL Films piece on him is one of the best they ever did. Excuse the presence of OJ Simpson and Bill Cosby.
“Give me 18 inches of daylight, that’s all I need.”
Oh, and Billy Dee Williams played him in one of the best sports movies, ever.
By the way, the only other person who could bring OJ and the Cos together? Ahmad Rashad:
Photo from the wedding of Ahmad and Phylicia Rashad. From left: OJ Simpson, Ahmad, Bill Cosby, Phylicia Rashad, Debbie Allen — officiant – Stanley from The Office (not really)
4. Sid Luckman, QB/P/DB, 1939-1950
The problem is not that Sid Luckman is the greatest quarterback in Bears history, because he was one of the NFL’s All-Time best, it’s the fact that in the SIXTY-NINE years since he retired, they’ve had nobody come close to as good as him. Sid led the NFL in passing yards three times, in touchdown passes three times, he won four NFL championships with the Bears. He was the punter and led the league in punt average once. He also played some defensive back and intercepted 15 passes. Luckman was a four-time All-Pro and the 1943 NFL MVP.
3. Bronko Nagurski, FB/T, 1930-1937, 1943
He should be on the list for his name alone, but he also was a Hall of Fame caliber player on both sides of the ball. He was huge for the time, wearing a 19.5 ring and a size 8 helmet (actually that’s huge for any time). Legend has it that on one touchdown run he broke four tackles, carried a defender into the end zone, clipped the goal post and slammed into the brick wall at Wrigley Field and broke some of the bricks. He joked, “That last guy hit me pretty hard.” He played on three NFL title teams with the Bears, was a seven-time All-Pro and retired in 1937, only to come out of retirement in 1943 because so many Bears were in the service in World War II. He told Halas he would only play defensive tackle, but ended up back at fullback in the season’s final regular season game, a must-win contest against the Chicago Cardinals. Nagurski scored a touchdown in the win, and then again in the NFL championship game win over the Redskins.
2. Dick Butkus, LB, 1965-1973
There was a time when you could be a great linebacker and not be compared to Dick Butkus, but that was a long time ago. He is widely considered the greatest to ever play the position, and for good reason. Nobody has ever combined his unique blend of strength, athleticism and downright disregard for human life. Knee injuries shortened his career, but not his impact. Selected in the same first round as Gale Sayers in 1965 (top that, any other NFL GM, ever), Butkus was an eight time All-Pro, two-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, is in the Hall of Fame, and still holds the NFL record for fucking dudes up on the field. He made the NFL’s All-Decade team for the 60s and 70s and only played in four seasons in the ’70s.
1. Walter Payton, RB, 1975-1987
He made this easy. The Bears are the oldest franchise in NFL history, and you’d think picking the greatest player in team history would be tough. But when they said they were coming out with this list, the reaction was, “I wonder where the other 99 guys will be ranked.” Number one was never in doubt.
Walter Payton is the greatest runner in team history, the greatest receiver in team history, likely the best passer in team history, and could have played nearly any position and done it better than the guy who was there. He is the greatest all-around football player in the history of the NFL, and it’s probably not all that close.
The Bears have more Hall of Famers than any other franchise and he stands alone at the top. He played every down as though it were his last. He fought for every yard. He saved countless mediocre quarterbacks by throwing his body in between them and oncoming pass rushers (among his many great skills, he’s probably the best pass protector of any running back, ever). To tackle him was to absorb his punishment, not the other way around. Those of us who saw him play are fortunate. For those who didn’t, well, the tape doesn’t lie.
Now that was a football player.