best linebackers of the 1970s

LT finished his career with 142 sacks, averaging nearly 11 sacks per season. The second member of the Dome Patrol comes off the board at No. When you see a list of greatest linebackers, Isiah Robertson very rarely even gets brought into the discussion. The Pittsburgh Steelers are second with all-time players in four decades. But Mills did much more than that. No. Mills racked up 1,142 tackles in his career. Taylor is one of only two defensive players (DT Alan Page, 1971) in the history of the NFL to be named NFL MVP. 1. Top 13 Indiana High School Players of all Time, The 6 greatest Indiana Highschool pure Shooters, The 8 greatest IHSAA Championship Games in History. How NFL Players Have Evolved. This team was widely regarded as having one of the best defenses of all-time. Top 25 SEC LBs of all-time: No. 5-1 - Saturday Down South He did it in 2000 and again in 2003. Hes also had at least 83 tackles in every year other than his rookie season. He even made the Pro Bowl in a year that he only started eight games and also a year in which he only started nine games. The next year, he followed it up with four more interceptions. A true enforcer in every sense of the word, Lewis intensity was unmatched by any player of his era. The Minnesota Vikings did an outstanding job of drafting linebackers in 1974. Next up, we look at a much better-rated unit in the linebackers. That truly shows what kind of person he was off the field. No. Greene and Greg Lloyd made one of the best pass rushing duos in NFL history with the Pittsburgh Steelers. 2022 - SportsUnfold. LSU women's basketball makes it rain in rout of Georgia in SEC Singletary was one of the key leaders of the famous 85 Bears defense, arguably the greatest defense in the history of the NFL. The Top Ranked Linebackers of the 1960s His best season was his first year with the Bills where he had 17.5 sacks, 70 tackles, two INTs, and three forced fumbles. But it was his style of play that made his career so short. No. Thomas never had less than seven sacks in a season in his entire career, and only had less than eight sacks in one season. No. Trotter was a complete, all-around linebacker. He should be in the Hall of Fame. Matt Blair was a very intimidating linebacker, and helped the Vikings get to two Super Bowls in his career. Chris Spielman was a tackle machine during his 10 years in the NFL. Hes going into his first healthy season again in three years. Playing 20 seasons in the NFL is amazing at any position. Gradishar was the silent assassin of the team. 10 Tom Jackson. The defense was ranked right up there along with the 1985 Bears, and Steelers teams of the 1970s. Jack Ham might be the best coverage linebacker of all time. The 70s were a rough decade for the Browns, but the 1980s were getting off to a great start with the franchise returning to the playoffs, despite the tragedy of " Red Right 88 " in 1981. Schmidt stood out in an era of great middle linebackers. He had 1,301 tackles and 25 forced fumbles in his career. Junior Seau finished his career with 1,524 tackles, the highest total on this list. If not, you can open it also by clicking the following link: Top 10 Athletes past the age of 40: Where does Tom Brady rank? He wasnt great at just one aspect he was equally great at everything he did. PFF Rankings: The NFL's top 25 linebackers ahead of the 2020 NFL season O. J. Simpson and Lynn Swann were next with 22 and 21 votes, respectively. *Three-time Pro Bowler *One-time 1st Team All-Pro. White House Livid Over Republican's Attack on Biden's Dead Son 27. His sacks are the main reason hes this high, but he was also a great all-around player. Jack Ham had the whole package as a linebacker. I’m only going to be looking at players drafted in 1970 or later. Swilling was the best pass rusher of the Dome Patrol, but he also forced 36 fumbles to go along with all the sacks. Top 9 Most Underrated Running Backs in NFL History, QB Derek Carr to visit Jets on Saturday after leaving Raiders, Top 9 Worst Draft Picks in Bengals History, Super Bowl XIX: Montana and Walsh establish dominance, The 5 Greatest Quarterbacks Who Never Won a Championship, Top 11 Single Game Performances in NCAA Football History, Top 10 College football's greatest true freshman seasons of all time, Top 10 Two Year Runs in College Football History, where do the Georgia Bulldogs rank, NCAA FB Championship TCU vs Georgia: Odds, Tips and Predictions 01/09/23, Georgia vs. TCU National Championship: Preview & Prediction, Michigan Coach Jim Harbaugh facing possible suspension from the NCAA, The night Cassius Clay shook up the world, Boxing Paul vs Fury: Odds, Tips and Predictions 02/26/23, Matias vs. Ponce: Cant Miss Scrap Brings Heat To Chilly Minneapolis. . 5, Jack Lambert (Steelers) (1974-1984) *Nine-time Pro Bowlers *Seven-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. Julian Peterson has had a very well-rounded NFL career to this point, and its still going on. No. He even made the Pro Bowl in a year that he only started eight games and also a year in which he only started nine games. Banks was a player that any coach would want on their team. Jack Lambert played middle linebacker. He was very athletic, a great tackler, and he could cover. 21, Patrick Willis* (49ers) (2006-Present) *Three-time Pro Bowler *Two-time 1st team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. Williams was the heart and soul of two Super Bowl defenses. Peterson is another versatile linebacker who has played both inside and outside linebacker. As a pass rusher, Greene would be top 5 at least, his ability to be an every-down linebacker hurts him overall, he was not great against the run. Rickey Jackson could do it all. 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 . Edmunds will have to clean up the missed tackles and improve in coverage to rise toward where most slot him currently a top-10 linebacker on this list next season. Derrick Thomas still holds the NFL record for most sacks in a single NFL game with seven, against the Seattle Seahawks in 1990. His best days were with the Bears and Redskins, but he had an impact everywhere he went. That is just unheard of. If you havnt guessed it by now, Lawrence LT Taylor is my top linebacker of the modern era. NFL 100 All-Time Team (2019). Best players in Clemson history: Linebackers 20 greatest linebackers in NFL history - Franchise Sports No. The Greatest Penn State Linebackers of All Time It was tied for the best of the day with linebacker Owen Pappoe, of Auburn, and was the second-fastest time from an . Randy Gradishar played along with Tom Jackson in the Denver Broncos Orange Crush defense. Pat Swilling was an outstanding pass rusher in his career, totaling up 107 sacks in his career and 101.5 sacks in a 10 year period throwing out his rookie year and last season of his career. Lambert won four Super Bowls with the Steelers in the 1970s playing in the Steel Curtain. Linebacker finalists announced for NFL 100 All-Time Team He wasnt great at one aspect but was equally as good at everything he did. No. More from Green Bay Packers. The middle linebacker also recorded 52 tackles for loss, which is fourth all-time in Clemson history. He could play zone and man. Super Bowl winner. Rickey Jackson doesnt always get the credit he deserves, but hes a top 10 linebacker of the modern era. Playoffs: Won Divisional Round 5-0 vs. Detroit Lions. News Briefs: The latest updates in the Uptown and Downtown He was very solid in coverage, good against the run, and had no real weaknesses. 25, Karl Mecklenburg (Broncos) (1983-1994) *Six-time Pro Bowler *Three-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro Karl "The Albino Rhino" Mecklenburg was the definition of a blue collar player. Find out what the legends have to say about sports this week. thegruelingtruth.com is available in the following countries: The bonus offer of was already opened in an additional window. He had an outstanding attitude and would do anything to get his team a win. No. Brooks was the leader of that defense, but his surrounding cast was just too good to rank him higher. 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 . No. Named to NFL's All-Decade Team for 1970s and 1980s. Seau is one of the Chargers' all-time great players, and will go to Canton five years after he retires like he should. He was also a good pass rusher, and a good coverage man as well. Chip Banks was another linebacker that was solid at everything, but not great at anything. 37, Wilber Marshall (Bears/Redskins/Oilers/Cardinals/Jets) (1984-1995) *Three-time Pro Bowler *Two-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. 1970 Defensive Player of the Year 5-time first-team All-Pro 8-time Pro Bowler The best high school, college and NFL linebackers are annually presented with the Butkus Award, named in honor of . Those would be accomplishments by themselves, let alone all together. Defensive MVP in 2002. This site is using Cloudflare and adheres to the Google Safe Browsing Program. For most other franchises, a resume like this would make Jack Ham the greatest linebacker in thier history by a wide margin. Chicago 1981-92. 50, Bryan Cox (Dolphins/Bears/Jets/Patriots/Saints) (1991-2003). Kolen was drafted by the Dolphins in the 12 th round . Peter Boulware was the pass rusher alongside Ray Lewis. He had 885 career solo tackles, which is impressive on a defense filled with swarming the ball, shown by his 1,488 career tackles. He totaled 28 INTs in his career while he also racked up 1,045 tackles. He finished his career with 1,106 tackles and 627 assisted tackles as well. In his time in the NFL, he intercepted 25 passes and returned six of them for touchdowns with three of those in 2002 alone. AP Sports SummaryBrief at 12:30 a.m. EST 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. Mar 3, 2023 Updated 4 min ago. There is a reason the award given to the best linebacker in high school, college and the NFL each year is named after Butkus. Hardy Nickerson makes it this high on the list mainly because of one ridiculous season he had. He always tried to better himself and did it effectively. 33, Al Wilson (Broncos) (1999-2006) *Five-time Pro Bowler *One-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. Discuss this article along with many other quality articles, discussions, and much more at: http://forums.sportsjabber.net/sjforums/showthread.php?t=54444. And he's still going. He is the only linebacker to ever take the honor. Boards are the best place to save images and video clips. The-greatest-linebackers-in-Denver-Broncos-history-series With time to spare in the NFL offseason, Ill take a look at the top 50 linebackers in the NFL in the modern era. [3] He was always around the ball. When you think of Singletary, the first thing that comes to mind is intense focus. But Mills did much more than that. 18, Andre Tippett (Patriots) (1982-1993) *Five-time Pro Bowler *Two-time 1st Team All-Pro *Two-time 2nd Team All-Pro. He started his career out with the Packers, if they would have used him correctly he would have been higher on this list. Briggs should only continue to move up this list, as he takes over as the star linebacker spot in Chicago. Top 25 SEC LBs of all-time: 15-11. 29, Joey Porter* (Steelers/Dolphins/Cardinals) (1999-Present) *Four-time Pro Bowler *One-time 1st Team All-Pro *Three-time 2nd Team All-Pro. Lambert wasnt just great on the inside, he was an outstanding coverage linebacker. During the five year stretch from 1991-1995 where he made five consecutive Pro Bowls, Lloyd was one of, if not the, most dominating linebackers in the NFL. 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. Brazile was drafted out of Jackson State and revolutionized linebacker play in the NFL. I think hell climb up this list further in the near future. 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. Linebacker is one of the most important and demanding positions in football. Merriman still has the potential to be a great player again. Eleven Pro Bowls. . But he proved them wrong and was a key piece on the Broncos Super Bowl winning team. He had five INTs in a season twice in his career. His 32 career INTs lead the way for linebackers. Already in his career, Ware has forced 23 fumbles. Peppers' 159.5 career sacks rank fourth on the all-time list. No. He was unstoppable in goal line situations especially. Top 10 LB's in OU history - 247sports.com Wright has been one of the most reliable linebackers in the NFL since entering the league as a fourth-round pick out of Mississippi State . Brooks wasnt just a pass coverage linebacker, but he also played the run well. An important part of the Las Vegas defense, the LB position includes middle or inside linebackers and outside (strong side or weakside) linebackers. Both . Top 10 Washington Football Team LBs of All Time - Sports Articles Taylor changed the way football is played today. Bryce Paup was an outstanding pass rusher in the 1990s. Joey Porter may be the most vocal linebacker on this list. 36, Jeremiah Trotter (Eagles/Redskins/Bucs) (1999-2007 & 2009) *Four-time Pro Bowler *One-time 1st Team All-Pro *One-time 2nd Team All-Pro. There was a story of someone meeting Thomas at the Pro Bowl for no longer than 10 minutes. He also played a big role in one of the most dominant performances by a defense in Super Bowl history. Isiah Robertson, nicknamed The Playmaker, was known for coming up with the big plays in the biggest games. HELLO, PANDORA. He was close to averaging a sack per game, which is an amazing number. He had ten seasons with 10+ sacks. 1970 Dallas Cowboys Roster & Players - Pro-Football-Reference.com http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNzd9Xd0who, No. 5.) Offerdahl was a blue collar type of player who was an even better person off the field. Lawrence Taylor of course, is regarded as the best 3-4 linebacker ever, . After a very bad injury in 2008, Shawne Merriman hasnt been the same. Regardless, he definitely deserves the respect for what he accomplished on the field. Al Wilson was an outstanding MLB for the Broncos. Also note that an asterisk (*) by the players name means they are still active today. LSU ENDS REGULAR SEASON 27-1LSU women's basketball ties program-best season .

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