Dan Hampton has always been a guy who shoots from the hip. The Hall of Famer is a product of his era back when the Chicago Bears were a brash bunch who loved to talk. It’s what made them so fun to watch. Hampton has used that personality to his advantage, becoming one of the favorite local Bears analysts for several years. He seemed like one of the perfect people to ask about the impact of Khalil Mack.
Suffice to say? Hampton is a gigantic Mack fan. He recently spoke to the Chicago Sun-Times regarding the trade the Bears made for him and what his addition means to the defense. On the surface, his comment was entirely in support of the 27-year old star. However, amidst the praise came a rather shocking dismissal of another Bears icon.
“Khalil Mack is special,” the Pro Football Hall of Fame defensive lineman said Thursday, appearing inside Halas Hall to help unveil the Bears’ plans for their 100th season in 2019. “When I heard the Bears [traded for and] signed him, I said, ‘He’s the best player we’ve had in 30 years …’”
Wow. So say that and clearly take a shot at newly enshrined Hall of Fame linebacker Brian Urlacher is something. It’s also incorrect.
Khalil Mack is the best pass rusher the Bears have had in 30 years
It shouldn’t be a surprise that Hampton made this comment. He’d never admit it, but he’s biased. The guy is a Hall of Fame defensive lineman. Of course he would raise the great edge rusher to a higher tier than Urlacher. He even made that clear when he tried to say he wasn’t trying to insult the former middle linebacker.
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“No offense to Urlacher, but you’ve seen how he changes the complexion of the defense.”
With respect, Hampton took it one step too far. Mack is not the best “player” the Bears defense has had in 30 years. He’s the best “pass rusher” they’ve had in 30 years. A lot of people will say that title belongs to Julius Peppers but it won’t be for much longer. Mack is just more of a terror than one could ever remember Peppers being, and that’s saying something because Peppers was phenomenal.
Yet to totally discount Urlacher’s impact like that? It’s wrong. Consider this. In 182 career games that Urlacher was on the field, offenses scored 3,433 points against the Bears defense. That works out to 18.86 per game. In the 26 games he missed with injury, the Bears defense allowed 615 points. That’s 23.65 points per game. That’s one player who provides almost a 5-point differential in the average score.
Just in case people still wonder why the guy was a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
Mack is going to be in the Hall of Fame one day. He’s every bit as great and dominant as Urlacher was. Yet he is not better than he was. It’s not at all a shot to him. It is merely a reminder that people should not let present excellence override past excellence.
