By now everybody has heard about what happened regarding Brian Urlacher and his comments on Instagram. While people come down on both sides of the issue, it’s safe to say the Chicago Bears icon angered a lot of people. This includes former teammates like Matt Forte and Sherrick McManis. Even the organization itself released a statement making it clear his views in no way reflect their own.
The Hall of Fame linebacker has an untouchable legacy on the field. However, his reputation seems to have taken a severe hit in the past week. One man who knows him well that was shocked and heartbroken by the comments was Rashied Davis. Most fans will remember him as a solid reserve wide receiver who excelled on special teams in the mid-2000s. His huge catch against the Seattle Seahawks in the playoffs in 2006 is an all-time moment.
He appeared on the Dan Berstein Show for 670 The Score to talk about it. He admitted the comments hurt him deeply as someone whose family has encountered police brutality several times. However, rather than simply blast his former teammate Davis chose to reach out and ask for a meeting to discuss the matter. Urlacher agreed.
Brian Urlacher has become a complicated figure
There are lots of people who still love Urlacher and even some who agree with his views. It is well within their rights to do so. That said, it feels like Urlacher’s legacy in Chicago has become more and more muddied since he retired. While a tremendous leader and teammate, it seems his world views do not fall in line with most of his former African-American teammates.
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Hopefully Davis can help him to understand their point of view. It’s easy to bash the man after those comments. It takes a lot of courage to contact him and offer to sit down and talk. Hopefully Urlacher can gain a new perspective on things. Otherwise he could risk alienating a large part of a fan base that adored him for decades.