As the NFL continues to countdown the best players in the league’s 100-year history, there are three more Chicago Bears that made the NFL 100’s All-Time Team.
Linebacker Dick Butkus and defensive ends Doug Atkins and Bill Hewitt were the latest Bears to earn a spot on the list, both of which were revealed on Friday night.
Dick Butkus is one of the 12 LBs selected to the #NFL100 All-Time Team!
🐻 8x Pro Bowler
🐻 NFL 1960s + 1970s All-Decade Team
🐻 2x Defensive Player of the Year (1969, 1970) pic.twitter.com/KE9reMjiON— NFL (@NFL) November 30, 2019
The complete list of linebackers included: Chuck Bednarik, Bobby Bell, Derrick Brooks, Butkus, Jack Ham, Ted Hendricks, Jack Lambert, Willie Lanier, Ray Lewis, Joe Schmidt, Junior Seau and Lawrence Taylor.
Doug Atkins is one of the 7 DEs selected to the #NFL100 All-Time Team!
🏈 2x NFL champion (1954, 1963)
🏈 8x Pro Bowl (1957–1963, 1965)
🏈 1963 First-team All-Pro pic.twitter.com/cA1bRJOawZ— NFL (@NFL) November 30, 2019
Bill Hewitt is one of the 7 DEs selected to the #NFL100 All-Time Team!
🏈 Played offense and defense
🏈 Fans called him "The Offside Kid" because of his quickness getting off the line
🏈 First to be named All-NFL with two teams pic.twitter.com/E1p8tVCgT2— NFL (@NFL) November 30, 2019
The complete list of defensive ends included: Atkins, Hewitt, Deacon Jones, Gino Marchetti, Lee Roy Selmon, Bruce Smith and Reggie White.
Given the talent at linebacker over the Bears’ storied 100-year history, it’s an absolute shock that Butkus was the only linebacker named to the NFL 100 All-Time Team. You could argue that Bill George, Mike Singletary and Brian Urlacher all deserved a spot on the list given their dominance at the position in their respective decades.
Running backs Walter Payton and Gale Sayers were previously named to the All-Time Team.
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