. Spielman had seven straight 100 tackle seasons, and did it eight out of nine years. There was a story of someone meeting Thomas at the Pro Bowl for no longer than 10 minutes. Thats an outstanding number. Greene was one of the best pass rushers of all time, recording 160 sacks in his career. Hes going into his first healthy season again in three years. Holdovers from the National Football League 1960s All-Decade Team were Bob Lilly, Dick Butkus, Merlin Olsen, Larry Wilson, and Jim Bakken, which made them the first players to make multiple All-Decade teams in NFL history. Floyd Reese, the general manager who assembled the roster for the Tennessee Titans' lone Super Bowl appearance, died Saturday. Tippett was a big reason to why so many teams value pass rushing OLBs in todays game. Derrick Thomas was on pace to absolutely shatter NFL records before his tragic death in 2000. 2, Ray Lewis* (Ravens) (1996-Present) *Eleven-time Pro Bowler *Seven-time 1st Team All-Pro *Two-time 2nd Team All-Pro. 2) Jeff Siemon: A key player as the middle linebacker on the team's top defenses in the mid-1970's, Siemon played in 156 games, starting 123, and was selected to four Pro Bowls during his eleven year career with the Vikings. Fredd Young went a little under the radar due to his short seven year career. He had an outstanding attitude and would do anything to get his team a win. Quinto was a regular at both inside and outside linebacker for head coach Ron Gladnick's Saints. Boulware gets overlooked a lot playing because of playing with Ray Lewis, but he was a key component in that dominating Ravens defense of the early 2000s. Neal Olkewicz. Mecklenburg was never a cocky player, but just a guy who would show up on Sundays. The leader of the Dome Patrol comes in at No. Swilling was the best pass rusher of the Dome Patrol, but he also forced 36 fumbles to go along with all the sacks. After a very bad injury in 2008, Shawne Merriman hasnt been the same. As also playing DE should tell you, he was very versatile and could play many different positions. Eleven Pro Bowls. 32, John Offerdahl (Dolphins) (1986-1993) *Five-time Pro Bowler *One-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. It was tied for the best of the day with linebacker Owen Pappoe, of Auburn, and was the second-fastest time from an . Ray Lewis came into the league and dominated right away. Jack Ham might be the best coverage linebacker of all-time. He was also the first player to have a TE or RB used for chip blocking on, and overall changed the way offensive lineman block. Andre Tippett may have been outshined by Lawrence Taylor playing basically the same position at the same time frame, but theres no mistaking what Tippett did on the field. Career highlights: Super Bowl champion (1969), three-time Pro Bowl (1970-72), two . So while there were outstanding linebackers in previous years, like Dick Butkus and Ray Nitschke, they will not be on this list. FCK Prediction, Head-To-Head, Live Stream, Hamilton vs Arbroath Prediction, Head-To-Head, Live Stream, Paderborn vs FC St. Pauli Prediction, Head-To-Head, Live, Andorra vs Las Palmas Prediction, Head-To-Head, Live Stream, AGF vs Horsens Prediction, Head-To-Head, Live Stream Time,, Southend Utd vs Barnet Prediction, Head-To-Head, Live Stream, Kawasaki vs Shonan Bellmare Prediction, Head-To-Head, Live. 10 Tom Jackson. Briggs does a lot of pass coverage with the Bears, and has had 53 passes deflected already in his career. Jul 07, 2014 at 11:02 PM. Eleven Pro Bowls. 45, Shawne Merriman* (Chargers) (2005-Present) *Three-time Pro Bowler *One-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. Bill Parcells considered Carson the best all-around linebacker he ever coached, which is very high praise from someone who has coached a ton of linebackers in his day. Junior Seau finished his career with 1,524 tackles, the highest total on this list. Top 9 Greatest World Series Upsets of All Time, 2021 NBA Finals Phoenix Suns vs Milwaukee Bucks: Series Preview and Prediction, Esteban de Jesus, Roberto Duran y AIDS (1972-89), NFL Draft 2021: Sam Teets top 100 prospects big board, Sam Teets two-round 2021 NFL Mock Draft 5.0 with Kyle the Commish, Every NFL teams best player not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame- NFC East, Top 100 remaining 2021 NFL free agents after Day 1, Predicting the next five Pro Football Hall of Fame classes, Ranking the top 200 players in the NFL ahead of the 2021 season, Top 100 NFL free agents entering the 2021 offseason, Notable Pro Football Senior Committee Hall of Fame candidates for 2020, Active NFL players in 2019 who will make the Hall of Fame- AFC North, Top 13 Indiana High School Players of all Time, The 6 greatest Indiana Highschool pure Shooters, The 8 greatest IHSAA Championship Games in History. [a][4]. The player that gives Butkus the most competition in that category would be Mike Singletary. 1, Lawrence Taylor (Giants) (1981-1993) *Ten-time Pro Bowler *Eight-time 1st Team All-Pro *Two-time 2nd Team All-Pro. And here are the 25 greatest linebackers in NFL history: 25. He finished his career with 132.5 sacks. Any coach would be lucky to have a player like Karl Mecklenburg on their roster. He also ranks third all . No. Pat Swilling. 1970, slow dancing in Mark Wooldridge's basement with my first girlfriend, Karen Frey, who wore white high-top . Baker recorded 19 . No. Check out the 1970 Minnesota Vikings Roster, Stats, Schedule, Team Draftees, Injury Reports and more on Pro-Football-Reference.com. The former college basketball star is considered one of the best defensive linemen to ever play in the NFL. Jackson was most notable for being a pass rusher, but he really did it all. and 2000s. He had 1,301 tackles and 25 forced fumbles in his career. Opponents thought Kirkland would not be as adept in pass coverage as the fast Lloyd, but they quickly found out that Kirkland was just as fast and quick. In 1993 as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers middle linebacker, Nickerson piled up an astounding 214 tackles. Mecklenburg finished his career with 79 sacks, which is great for an ILB, and also ranks 2nd all-time in Broncos history. Atlanta Falcons outside linebacker Arnold Ebiketie #47 gets a hold of Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields #1 during the second half of a game against the Chicago Bears at Mercedes-Benz Stadium . Suggs will only continue to climb this list the longer he plays, since hes in the middle of his prime right now. Theres not much Brooks doesnt have. Still, he was a very solid MLB for many years. LAS CRUCES, N.M. (AP) At New Mexico State, the once-treasured men's basketball program has been suspended for the season due to a fatal shooting and a gruesome allegation of locker-room . Julian Peterson has had a very well-rounded NFL career to this point, and its still going on. Behind the Purple People Eaters of the 70s was one of the best safeties the league has ever seen. Derrick Thomas still holds the NFL record for most sacks in a single NFL game with seven, against the Seattle Seahawks in 1990. Wilson recorded 560 tackles and 21.5 sacks as a member of the Broncos. These were the players who were great players, but not quite good enough to be placed inside the top 50. Greene and Greg Lloyd made one of the best pass rushing duos in NFL history with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Paul Naumoff. No. He was also a big hitter and very intimidating on the field of play. When you see a list of greatest linebackers, Isiah Robertson very rarely even gets brought into the discussion. No. Use Isiah Robertsons name in a talk of most underrated players of all time, and youll impress your fellow football fans. Thats the type of player you want on your team, especially on the defensive side of the ball. O. J. Simpson and Lynn Swann were next with 22 and 21 votes, respectively. He may have actually been crazy. Gradishar was the silent assassin of the team. 1953-65, Detroit Lions. Thats amazing consistency. Greene led the way in the pass rushing department. No. 3, Mike Singletary (Bears) (1981-1992) *Ten-time Pro Bowler *Seven-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. No. 12, Randy Gradishar (Broncos) (1974-1984) *Seven-time Pro Bowler *Two-time 1st Team All-Pro *Three-time 2nd Team All-Pro. Mills was more of a complete player than Swilling, although the two are too close to separate one from the other. He would always be found around the ball, and around the play. Visit Our Patreon Page to Create Your Own All-Time Fantasy Teams and See Other Bonus Material . 29, Joey Porter* (Steelers/Dolphins/Cardinals) (1999-Present) *Four-time Pro Bowler *One-time 1st Team All-Pro *Three-time 2nd Team All-Pro. And he's still going. Outside linebacker Joey Porter came to Pittsburgh in 1999. Bet with your head, not over it. Blair was outstanding in coverage, along with being a great tackler. Marshall wasnt just a pass coverage linebacker though, he also racked up 1,020 tackles during his 11 year NFL career, along with 24 forced fumbles. Bryce Paup was an outstanding pass rusher in the 1990s. In 2006, he had an amazing season and won defensive MVP, which is a very high honor that most players on this list never achieved. He was unstoppable in goal-line situations especially. When you ask who is the greatest MLB of all-time is, many people jump straight to Dick Butkus. Some of you will say hes too low. Bulluck was one of the best pass coverage linebackers in NFL history. Swilling was the best pass rusher of the Dome Patrol, but he also forced 36 fumbles to go along with all the sacks. He made five straight Pro Bowls, but the reason he doesnt rank higher on this list is because he was never a feared player like his teammate Michael Strahan was, and his stats just arent good enough. Top 13 Indiana High School Players of all Time, The 6 greatest Indiana Highschool pure Shooters, The 8 greatest IHSAA Championship Games in History. Of the five LBs chosen to the 1950s All-Decade Team the others were Bednarik, Fortunato, George, and Huff Schmidt made the most Pro Bowls (nine) and the most all-pro teams (seven first-team, nine altogether). The second member of the Dome Patrol comes off the board at No. Featuring 2018-2019 Raiders and some of the greatest NFL linebackers of all time, the best Raiders LBs include Ted Hendricks, Khalil Mack, Rod Martin, Sam Wiliams, and Greg Biekert. Mo Lewis was another very consistent and solid player. Seau is one of the Chargers' all-time great players, and will go to Canton five years after he retires like he should. The next year, he followed it up with four more interceptions.



Shoreditch House Screening Room, Articles B