My All-Time Historical Chicago Bears team is full of Hall of Famers, Top 100 Bears, All Pros, and Pro Bowlers, and the few players who lack those accolades all fit a specific need on my squad. This is, without a shadow of a doubt, the greatest team assembled in our exercise, so the only name that fits is the Gridiron Greats.
- By now, you all know the basic rules of our All-Bears Historical Fantasy Draft. We each picked a team consisting of 25 players. We got 11 picks on offense, 11 picks on defense, and three picks on special teams.
- The offensive picks require a full offensive line, a quarterback, a running back, two wide receivers, and a tight end. The 11th pick on offense could go to any skill position of the team’s choosing.
- Given the Bears’ historical preference for a 4-3 base defense over a 3-4, we required two defensive ends, two defensive tackles, two linebackers, two cornerbacks, and two safeties. The 11th pick could be used at any position of the team’s choosing, whether it be a nickel defender, a third linebacker, or an extra defensive lineman.
- For the special teams picks, we were asked to take one kicker, one punter, and one miscellaneous contributor (returner, coverage defender, long snapper).
- Each player’s skill level will be transported to the modern age. For example, a Hall of Fame offensive lineman from the 1940s, while smaller than the modern o-lineman, will still be a Hall of Famer.
- We also only get the player’s ability as it was when he played in Chicago. For example, Jason Peters made 9 Pro Bowls from 2007-2016 while in Philly, and if he were drafted in this exercise, the drafter would only get his abilities in 2021 as a 39-year-old Bear.
Chicago Gridiron Greats
OFFENSE
QB – Sid Luckman (1st Round): Chicago’s best quarterback of all time led them to 4 NFL Championships in the 1940s, and he still holds League and franchise passing records. He
was named the 4th greatest Bear of all time as part of the 100th anniversary celebration.
FB – Bronko Nagurski (3rd Round): I picked Bronko as my extra offensive skill player because he could run like a tailback, block like a fullback, and he even lined up as an offensive tackle, which would translate into some awesome 12 personal packages for my team. Nagurski was named the 3rd greatest Bears player of all time.
RB – Willie Galimore (13th Round): “The Wisp” made 2nd Team All-Pro and the Pro Bowl team in 1958, and was a member of the Bears’ 1963 Championship team. The speedy Galimore played in an era where they spit carries, and he’d be the lightning to Bronko’s thunder on my squad. He was 61 on the Bears’ Top 100.
WR – Ken Kavanaugh (8th Round): His 50 touchdown receptions are still the most in franchise history, and he last took a snap 76 years ago. Those 50 TDs were second all-time in NFL history when he retired. He started his career making consecutive Pro Bowls (‘ 40-’41), fought in WWII, then returned to the Monsters of the Midway in 1945 playing at an even higher level. He was a second-team All-Pro in 1947 with 13 TD catches, a team record that stands to this day. He’s number 40 on the Bears’ Top 100 and one of the starting wide receivers on their All-Time starting lineup, which the team’s site produced in 2019.
WR – Johnny Knox (20th Round): Knox’s 4.34 speed helped him make a Pro Bowl as a rookie, and in his second season, he caught 51 balls for 960 yards. A devastating injury in year three caused him to retire, making him one of the biggest what-ifs in Bears history.
TE – Martellus Bennett (14th Round): Bennett’s best football came in Chicago, making his lone Pro Bowl in 2014 with a career high 90 receptions for 916 yards.
LT – Andy Heck (25th Round): I did not expect to wait for the final round to address left tackle, but that’s how my board fell, and I couldn’t be happier with Heck. He manned the blind side for Eric Kramer’s 3,838 passing yards and 29 touchdown passes in 1995. In five years in Chicago, he started all 76 games he played in on the left side.
LG – Danny Fortmann (4th Round) – Fortmann was named the 10th greatest Bears player of all time, and he’s one of the seven guards named to the NFL’s 100th Anniversary All-Time Team. He played his entire 8-year career in Chicago, being named first-team All-Pro 6 times and second-team All-Pro the other 2 years, while helping the Bears win 3 Championships.
C – Clyde “Bulldog” Turner (2nd Round) – Named the eighth greatest Bear of all time, Turner played both center and linebacker, but for my team, he’s manning the pivot. The seven-time First Team All-Pro played from 1940 to 1952, and he helped Chicago to four rings.
RG – Stan Jones (5th Round) – Twelve years as a Bear with seven straight Pro Bowls, three First Team All Pros, a Second Team All Pro, an NFL Championship in ’63, capped by a 1991 Hall of Fame induction. Picked as number 17 on the All-Time Bears player list.
* My interior o-line of Jones, Turner, and Fortmann were named on Chicago’s All-Time starting lineup published by chicagobears.com, so it truly doesn’t get any better than that.
RT – Ed Healey (6th Round) – Healey played two years with the Rock Island Independents before George Halas purchased his contract, making him a member of the Bears in 1922. The deal went down shortly after Healey tried to punch Halas in the face. He made four straight All-Pro teams, is in the Hall of Fame, and is number 26 on the Bears Top 100. Halas called Healey “the most versatile tackle of all time.”
* I went offense with seven of my first eight picks, and staying on brand, I went offensive line with picks 2, 4, 5, and 6. I figured I could find plenty of legendary Bear defenders later down the board, and I was right.
DEFENSE
DE – Robert Quinn (18th Round) – His time in Chicago was short, but give me the All-Time single-season sack leader in Bears history to rush the passer. Quinn played only 2 and a half years in the Windy City (38 games), but his 2021 Pro Bowl, 2nd Team All-Pro, and 18.5 sacks left a mark on the franchise.
DT – George Trafton (9th Round) – The 33rd-ranked Chicago Bear’s player may be better known as an offensive center, but he was a terror on the d-line, where he was one of the first defensive centers (NT) to roam around the line. Former Bears great Harold “Red” Grange called Trafton the “meanest, toughest player alive.” He was disliked around the League, but Green Bay hated him. The two-time All-Pro was a part of the second-ever Hall of Fame Class (1964).
DT – Fred Williams (11th Round) – Four Pro Bowls and a member of the ’63 Championship team, Williams was 48 on the franchise’s Top 100. His ability to move up and down the line was a likely reason he never made an All-Pro team. “Williams’ versatility has prevented him from attaining recognition at any one position,” the Chicago Tribune’s Cooper Rollow wrote on July 2, 1961. “The wise-cracking Arkansan has, at various times, played both sides of the line at tackle and end, and even has performed as a linebacker.”
DE – Leonard Floyd (21st Round) – Floyd played outside linebacker in the Bears’ 3-4 under Vic Fangio, but he was always adept at setting the edge in the run game, so I have no concerns with him playing from a three-point stance on occasion. As a bonus, he could drop off in coverage on a zone blitz. He started 54 games in his four-year Bears career, with 18.5 sacks, 26 tackles for loss, and 44 QB hits.
LB – Joe Fortunato (10th Round) – Yet another Top 100 Bear (24), a member of the ’63 title team, and a starter on the team’s All-Time lineup. Fortunato was named a Pro Bowler five times, a First-Team All-Pro three times, and a Second-Team All-Pro. His 22 fumble recoveries are second in franchise history.
LB – Larry Morris (17th Round) – Both my linebackers are Top 100 Bears, with Morris checking in at 95. Morris had a sack and a 61-yard interception return in the 1963 Championship game, while being named MVP of the game. That season, he was also named a Second Team All-Pro. He was one of the linebackers on the 1960s All-Decade Team.
* Pro Football Reference tracked sacks from 1960 until they became an official NFL stat in 1982, and they had Fortunato with 21 from 1960 to 1966, and Morris with 21.5 sacks from 1960 to 1964, so my team has more than one way to get to the quarterback.
CB – J.C. Caroline (15th Round) – J.C was number 76 on the Bears’ Top 100 players list, a member of the 1963 Championship team, the Rookie of the Year in 1956 (as a corner/running back), while making the Pro Bowl that season. His 24 interceptions are tied for eighth all-time in team history.
S – Dave Duerson (12th Round) – Only one member of the SBXX on my squad, but Duerson was a fantastic player who made two 2nd Team All Pros and 4 Pro Bowls in his seven years as a Bear. His 18 interceptions and 16 sacks helped him be named the 47th greatest Bears player. Those 16 sacks are the most ever by a defensive back in franchise history. He was also the 1987 Walter Payton Man of the Year.
S – Tony Parrish (19th Round) – Parrish was a hard-hitting safety for four years in the Windy City, who started all 64 games. He averaged 84 tackles per season, with 18 total tackles for loss, 8 picks, 6 forced fumbles, 4 recoveries, and 4 sacks.
CB – Allan Ellis (22nd Round) – Ellis was number 86 on the Bears’ Top 100 list, and his 22 interceptions are tied for the 11th most in team history. He made the Pro Bowl in 1977, becoming the first Chicago cornerback in the modern football era to earn the honor.
DB – George McAfee (7th Round) – I took Hall of Famer “One Play” McAfee as my extra defender because he could literally do it all on the gridiron. While he’s more remembered for his talents on offense, he was picked as the starting cornerback on the Bears’ all-time team. His 25 interceptions are seventh in franchise history. The 23rd greatest Bears player of all time helped the Bears win league titles in 1940 and 1941, volunteered to serve in the Navy for 3 years, and returned to Chicago from 1945 to 1950, helping them win another championship in ’46. So whether running around my secondary making plays, getting some snaps on offense, or returning punts or kicks, McAfee is a difference-maker.
* This passage on McAfee was too fun not to share.
McAfee’s coach at Duke, Wallace Wade, called him “a one-man offense, and practically unstoppable.” Red Grange, a star of earlier Bears teams, called McAfee “the most dangerous man with the football in the game.” Green Bay Coach Earl “Curly” Lambeau called McAfee “the most talented back the Packers ever faced.” John F. Kieran, the sports columnist for The New York Times, wrote in 1940: “the debate around Chicago has been as to whether McAfee is just as good as Jim Thorpe ever was, or better.” George Halas, the Bears’ longtime owner and coach, once said, “the highest compliment you can pay any ball carrier is just compare him with McAfee.”
SPECIAL TEAMS
Returner – Tarik Cohen (16th Round) – Cohen was on his way up the Bears’ all-time receptions leaderboard by averaging 68 catches a season from 2017-2020, but a knee injury in year 4 robbed him of his career. His 4.1 receptions per game are tied with Matt Forte for the eighth most in team history. But back to his returning prowess, he made the Pro Bowl and was First Team All-Pro in 2018.
K – “Automatic” Jack Manders (23rd Round) – Not gonna lie, Manders’ nickname moved him up on my draft board. He’s a two-time NFL champion, two-time First-team All-Pro, and two-time NFL scoring leader. He nailed 72 straight extra points to start his career, an NFL record at the time. Transported into the modern era, he’d either hone his kicking craft under specialist coaches or play a different position entirely, since he was also an accomplished runner and blocker.
P – George Gulyanics (24th Round) – In looking over the qualified franchise leaders in yards per punt, as expected, it’s all modern punters near the top. Tory Taylor, Trenton Gill, Pat O’Donnell, and then… George Gulyanics, who led the NFL in that category as a rookie in 1947 and again in 1949. Gulyanics was booming punts 75 years ago while also playing halfback (2,681 yards from scrimmage). He spent 4 years in the Army fighting in WWII before his football career began.
* The final tally of my 25 players shows 8 in the Hall of Fame, 16 named to the Bears All-Time Top 100 Player list, and 8 are on the Bears’ all-time starting lineup.
You can check out our full draft here.
Once all eight teams are announced, we’ll hold a tournament and ask you, the WCG readers, to pick the winner.
Since I’m borrowing the name Gridiron Greats for my team, check out this recent post from the Gridiron Greats charity.
