Hello, Chicago Bears fans! Dan Hampton. Richard Dent. Steve “Mongo” McMichael. Julius Peppers. Tommie Harris. Akiem Hicks. George Connor. Ed Sprinkle. The Chicago Bears have more than their fair share of great defensive linemen throughout the years. But today we aren’t talking about who was the best Bears defensive lineman in franchise history, nor are we talking about the most productive defensive lineman in recent memory or since the turn of the century.
No, today I am talking about my all-time
favorite defensive lineman for the Chicago Bears. And it isn’t any of the defensive linemen I just mentioned. It’s hard to define exactly what makes a player a “favorite” of a given fan. Sometimes it is because we followed them in college or they played for our favorite college team, sometimes it is because they featured in an important game or did something amazing that brought us joy, and after which watching that player play for the Bears and rooting them on became part of our fan experience. And sometimes it is about where we were in life, or something that was going on in our lives, and that player featured during a special time of our fandom. Maybe they remind us of ourselves when we played ball, and we live our dream of playing for the Chicago Bears vicariously through them.
Ultimately, it is difficult to quantify what inspires us to “favorite” a particular player. A certain level of production on the field is a prerequisite. A certain length of time with the team also would seem to be a necessary component. But if you asked me why this player is my favorite defensive lineman of all time, the real answer is: because he is.
That said, we can certainly talk about the player’s qualities, production, and career with the Bears. So let’s talk about the career of my all-time favorite Chicago Bear defensive lineman: Jim Flanigan.
Jim Flanigan was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the third round of the 1994 NFL draft. He played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. As a fan of the Irish, undoubtedly the fact that he played for Notre Dame is one reason I was excited about the Bears picking Flanigan (I also rooted for Chris Zorich as a Chicago Bear Golden Domer). And it didn’t hurt that Jim Flanigan was born in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and his father, Jim Flanigan, Sr., played for the Green Bay Packers. There was certainly an element of liking Flanigan because we had stolen him from the Cheeseheads.
But it wasn’t all about his lineage or college team – Jim Flanigan was extremely productive for the Chicago Bears. In 1995, Jim Flanigan, from the defensive tackle position, posted 11 sacks and 39 solo tackles. That 1995 season Flanigan was a dominant presence on the Bears’ defensive interior. While he never reached that height again (his next highest sack total is 8.5 sacks in 1998), Flanigan posted a steady 5-6 sack season in most of the seasons he played with the Bears. He was not only productive when he was on the field – he was also always on the field. He played in all 16 games of the season for the Chicago Bears throughout his career, except for 1994 and 1996, and in both of those seasons, he played in 14 of those games.
Throughout the 1990s, the Chicago Bears could absolutely count on Jim Flanigan playing. If the best ability is availability, Jim Flanigan had one of the longer runs of steady play over a career for any Chicago Bear defensive lineman. Another fun fact about Jim Flanigan is the Bears occasionally used him at tight end. He had four receptions and four touchdowns across the 1994-1996 season – which is a pretty good touchdown to reception ratio. In fact, one of the most indelible memories I have of Jim Flanigan did not come on defense. On September 1st, 1997, against the hated Green Bay Packers, Flanigan caught a surprise pass – it looked to be a botched snap by Todd Sauerbrun, but that might have been intentional deception – for the first two-point conversion in Chicago Bears history (unfortunately, we would lose that game). Here is the iconic Stuart Scott with the SportsCenter highlights from the game (which includes Jim’s catch).
Anyway, that’s my all-time favorite defensive lineman – Jim Flanigan. Certainly not the greatest Bears defensive lineman – not even a Hall of Famer.
But he is my favorite.
Who is your all-time favorite Chicago Bears defensive lineman? Tell us in the comments below!
