Brian Urlacher's Top 5 Moments

Big Cat5/23/2013 4:20 PM

As I’ve said before I’m trying out new Bears writers, so a top 5 career retrospective on Lach was the perfect spot to see what we have. This is Bill. If you like Bill tell me. If you hate Bill also tell me. Bill is a big boy, he can handle it.

When Brian Urlacher announced his retirement yesterday I couldn’t have been more glad he ended his career a Bear. This was the way it should have happened in January. I just wish there wasn’t as much bad blood as there was. Hopefully, in time people will forget about all that shit and focus on his Hall of Fame career. With 8 pro bowls, Defensive Rookie of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year honors, Urlacher deserves all the credit in the world. But what’s worth noting tis what he did for Chicago, the Bears, and the NFL as a whole.

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When he entered the league in 2000 as the 9th overall pick, he didn’t have a set position. Just a freak athlete out of New Mexico with a nose for the ball. He eventually made his his way to the the Mike Linebacker spot under Greg Blache and in his 13 year career has redfined the profile of the position. His kind of speed, athleticism, and intelligence at linebacker is not new- but it was when he entered the league and offenses devloping into 4-5 wide sets. Urlacher’s unique skill set changed the way to posiiton was played and the way quarterbacks prepared. He was the perfect fit for Lovie’s Tampa 2 with freakish speed to handle TE’s down the seam and the sideline-to-sideline closing spped to make up for lost ground.

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As a leader and a teammate, a football fan would be crazy to not to want Urlacher as the leader of their defense. He was never a ‘rah rah, look at me’ asshole that we see all the time nowadays. He led by example and ran his defense like a coach on the field. Injuries and age have caught up with him now, but he’s responsible for the vast majority of Chicago Bears success on defense over the last decade- not to mention my barbed wire penis tattoo. In the 10 years before Urlacher, the Bears had ranked 17th in points allowed on average, in the last 13 years the Bears rank 5th in Points allowed collectively Defense. In the Bear’s ‘Bend Don’t Break’ style of play, points allowed was always the most important stat in Chicago.

There are too many great moments to squeeze into a definitive list, but for the sake of meaningless rankings here are my Top 5 Most Memorable Moments of Brian Urlacher’s Hall of Fame Career:

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5: 2004 Urlacher TD

There’s just something about awesome about watching a Defensive guy catch a touchdown pass. Brad Maynard tosses up a beauty on a fake feild goal during a route of the RedSkins. The rest of these highlisghts come in the ’01-’05’-06 seasons. Kind of the theme here. There wasn’t much to be happy about during the years inbetween, which made plays like this that much better.

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4: Intercepted by Urlacher

How many times as a Bears fan have you said, “Bears need a defensive score here.” That doesn’t happen in other cities. With such mediocre offenses throughout Urlachers career his, 22 career pics always seemed to come at the perfect time to change the momentum. Plus it doesn’t hurt this one came against during a Green Bay route. Something we haven’t seen in a while. 85 yards to the house.

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3: 2005: Blocks to Spring Nathan Vasher

Urlacher actually said this was his most memorable moment yesterday. He makes a string of blocks to launch Nathan Vasher to a 108 yd Feild Goal Attempt for a touchdown- a record at the time. Notice how he sprints past Vasher to make several blocks downfield like Bobby Bouche at the end of Waterboy. Opens a can a whoop ass like you wouldn’t believe.

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2: 2001, Michael Vick Meets Urlacher

This comes off a Defensive Rookie of the Year campaign where 54 lands permanently at Mike Linebacker. The clip is tattooed in my brain of Urlacher leaps over the Guard to chase Vick down forcing a fumble. Next play, Urlacher recovers a loose ball 90 yards for a TD and winks at a cheerleader on his way into the endzone. Bears go onto a 13-3 cinderella season and showcases his talent for one of the first times during a nationally televised game. Urlacher and Vick met 5 times since then, each matchup resulting in a Bears victory.

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1: 2006, Crown Their Ass!

By far and away the Number 1 performance of Urlacher’s career. 25 tackles, a forced fumble that Peanut Tillman returned a touchdown as the Bears rallied from a 23-3 deficit in the 4th qtr to beat the Arizona Cardinals 24-23on Monday Night Football. Urlacher goes onto win Defensive Player of the year and an NFC Championship. You wanna crown em’, then crown their ass!

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Honorable Mention: T.O. hears footsteps:

This comes during the 2001 season as Terrell Owens alligator arms over the middle, balls tipped and 54 cleans his fucking clock as Mike Brown scores his first of consecutive game ending touchdowns.