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Bears legend Dick Butkus dies at age 80 - Chicago Sun-Times

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Via:  john-russell  •  last year  •  10 comments

By:   Gene Farris (Chicago Sun-Times)

Bears legend Dick Butkus dies at age 80 - Chicago Sun-Times
After playing college football at Illinois, Butkus played his entire NFL career with his hometown Bears from 1965 to 1973.

S E E D E D   C O N T E N T


Bears legend Dick Butkus has died.

Bears legend and NFL Hall of Famer Dick Butkus has died. He was 80 years old.

According to TMZ, Butkus was found unresponsive in his Malibu, California, home on Thursday.

After playing college football at Illinois, Butkus played his entire NFL career with his hometown Bears from 1965 to 1973.

Butkus, whose No. 51 was retired by the Bears in 1994, was named to the league's All-Decade teams in the '60s and '70s ... as well as the 75th and 100th Anniversary teams.

He entered the Hall of Fame in 1979 in his first year of eligibility. He started all 119 games he played for the Bears, earning six All-NFL selections, two Defensive Player of the Year honors and was selected for eight Pro Bowls. He had 1,020 tackles, 22 interceptions and 27 fumble recoveries over nine seasons. Injuries shortened his career.

Butkus was among the Bears alumni honored at halftime of the Bears' season opener against the rival Packers. He was interviewed on the scoreboard earlier in the game and said that it was "always good to be back in Chicago, especially when the Bears are going to kick the Packers' [butt]."

Butkus visited Halas Hall the following week. He'd done so the year before, in Matt Eberflus' first month of regular-season games.

"It was awesome to have him here. It was special," Bears coach Matt Eberflus said in 2022. "I got a chance to take him up to my office and show him the Monsters of the Midway behind my desk. Of course, he's on top, which is cool. He really liked seeing that. It was a joy to visit with him."


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JohnRussell
Professor Principal
1  seeder  JohnRussell    last year

The college football award that goes to the nation's best linebacker every year is named the Butkus Award. 

 
 
 
JohnRussell
Professor Principal
2  seeder  JohnRussell    last year

 
 
 
JohnRussell
Professor Principal
2.1  seeder  JohnRussell  replied to  JohnRussell @2    last year

 
 
 
Kavika
Professor Principal
3  Kavika     last year

RIP Dick you were one of the very best.

 
 
 
devangelical
Professor Principal
3.1  devangelical  replied to  Kavika @3    last year

RIP dick butkus NFL icon. he sure inspired a lot of amateur carnage on the playing field back when I was in school...

 
 
 
Tacos!
Professor Guide
4  Tacos!    last year

Absolute legend. RIP.

 
 
 
Sean Treacy
Professor Principal
5  Sean Treacy    last year

A shame.  he was chirping the Packers just a few weeks ago. 

What a wrecking ball of a player. 

 
 
 
JohnRussell
Professor Principal
6  seeder  JohnRussell    last year
Consistently cited as one of football's meanest, toughest, and most feared players, Butkus was renowned for his intimidating profile and style of play. [21] [15]   He was known to snarl at the opposition prior to plays. [55]   Quarterbacks would complain of Butkus biting them in pileups. [56]   Lions tight end   Charlie Sanders   recalled Butkus poking him in the eyes with his fingers through his face mask. [57]   He once intercepted a pass from Vikings quarterback   Fran Tarkenton   near the goal line, and instead of taking the ball into the end zone for an easy touchdown, he took aim at Tarkenton to run him over. [6]   When asked by a reporter if he was mean as the rumors suggested, Butkus replied, "I wouldn't ever go out to hurt anybody deliberately. Unless it was, you know, important—like a league game or something." [58]

He played angry, often "manufacturing" things to make him mad, because he felt it gave him a competitive edge. [52] [59]   After the Bears lost to the Lions in their first matchup of 1969, Lions rookie running back   Altie Taylor   told reporters that Butkus was overrated. The next time the teams played that season, Butkus responded by chasing Taylor out of bounds after a play and causing him to jump into the stands at   Wrigley Field . [60] [61]

Butkus became most noted for his tackling ability, and the ferocity with which he tackled opponents. He was named the most feared tackler of all time by the   NFL Network   in 2009. [62]   Once during practice, he hit a metal football sled so hard that he crumpled it and left a piece of it dangling off. [53]   "Tackling wasn't good enough," recalled former Bears defensive end   Ed O'Bradovich . "Just to hit people wasn't good enough. He loved to crush people." [60]   Butkus is credited with 1,020 tackles in his NFL career. [16] [63] [64]

Butkus recovered 27 fumbles in his career, [a]   an NFL record at the time of his retirement. [16]   One of his greatest strengths was his ability to rip the ball from a ball carrier's hands. Although not an official statistic at the time, it has been noted that Butkus would certainly be one of the all-time leaders in forced fumbles. [60] [34]
 
 
 
Transyferous Rex
Freshman Quiet
6.1  Transyferous Rex  replied to  JohnRussell @6    last year

I know a few guys that played against Butkus in the pros. They all have Butkus stories. Cut from a different cloth.

 
 
 
charger 383
Professor Silent
7  charger 383    last year

One of my favorite players. 

 
 
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