On Wednesday morning, the Chicago Bears’ eight-time Pro Bowl linebacker, Brian Urlacher, decided to call it quits and retire forever a member of the Green Bay Packers most historic rival.
Packers fans should and will celebrate the retirement of a future hall-of-famer and one of the best linebackers to play in the NFL over the past twenty years.
Here’s a look back at his career, specifically against the Packers:
Urlacher’s Stats vs. the Green Bay Packers
– 5-8 record in 13 games (0-1 in the playoffs)
– 2.5 sacks, two coming against Brett Favre and the half against Aaron Rodgers
– 38 tackles, third to only the Detroit Lions (39) and Minnesota Vikings (42)
– 5 interceptions, the most against any team over his career (three off Favre and two off Rodgers)
*Stats obtained from Pro Football Reference.com
Least Favorite Memory
In 2007, the 12-3 Packers headed to Soldier Field to take on the 6-9 Bears as 7.5 favorites and were absolutely trampled in a 35-7 loss. Urlacher capped off the huge win with a 85 yard interception return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter to put the cherry on top of an embarrasing road trip for Green Bay.
The Packers had the last laugh as they took home the NFC North Crown, but it was also Favre’s final year and the infamous loss in overtime to the eventual Super Bowl-champion New York Giants in the NFC Championship Game.
Who Urlacher Should Be to Packers Fans?
Urlacher will forever be a terror in the minds of Packers fans as he epitomized what it means to play sideline to sideline. Arguably the best linebacker of his era (even though I would put Ray Lewis slightly ahead of him), he led the charge in what was one of the nastiest defenses in the NFL. With the Packers being an offensive-minded team behind the aerial acrobats of Favre and Rodgers, Urlacher was the most important piece in keeping the NFL’s oldest rivalry competitive each and every year.
How do you feel about Urlacher’s career against the Packers? Let me know by commenting below.
*Images obtained from zimbio.com
Nick Grays is a senior writer at the Sports Bank where he covers the Wisconsin Badgers and Green Bay Packers. He also enjoys sharing Fantasy Advice and pretends to be a Golf expert from time-to-time. Follow him on Twitter by clicking here or visit his blog Nick Knows Best. If social media is not your thing, shoot him an email at grays@uwalumni.com.