Rich Eisen Shares His Fondest Memories of Bears’ Legend Dick Butkus | The Rich Eisen Show

[@meatusshaft300]

We all have our finish lines to cross one day. This legend finished his race yesterday and his city finally got a job done for him too! Rest east, Chicago Great! 😊

[@meatusshaft300]

*easy 😅

[@irishseven100]

I"am 72 years old and have been a hardcore fan of football for 60 years, and i am not ashamed to say that i got emotional-shed some tears on the news of Mr. Butkis passing.He was---- I got to stop typing as i"am getting emotional again. Mad Love and RESPECT for this MAN

[@philosophy20]

🐻⬇️🐻⬇️🐻⬇️

[@irishseven100]

@@philosophy20 When, not if, your team starts winning again. Remember these losing times, it will make the winning taste more sweeter. I still believe Justin Fields has greatness in Him. Of the 5 QB"S taken in his draft class. I think then and now he was and is the best.They just need O Line, then this QB will BREAKOUT.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@raulduke6105]

Saw DB in a Chicago when I was 4. He was the biggest person I had ever seen, I couldn’t speak but he looked down and said ‘hi kid’ I was stunned. Rip big guy and thanks for the memories!😢

[@dariusmorgan8302]

Thanks so much for the heartfelt & really amazing reflections on Dick Butkus Rich. I just turned 50 and was born in Chicago & raised by my late father telling me all about Butkus...watching the old NFL Films (still just fantastic to watch)...how cold it was watching games at Wrigley...preaching to me the importance of Defense and what it means to the Bears and how Butkus embodied all the values of what being a Bear is. During the '85 season and, especially the playoffs, we'd turn the volume down on the TV and put on Chicago radio to hear Butkus do commentary during the games...still to this day one of my fondest memories. He was so so joyful and just bursting with pride calling the Super Bowl run. Nothing like it. I feel like I lost a family member. Thanks Rich for honoring him and for being a huge part of my childhood watching you on SC with my Dad. You've always been the epitome of sports journalism/coverage/knowledge at its best.

[@your_royal_highness]

Two stories about Dick: he was interviewed in the locker room once and was asked if he ever tried to hurt another player. He said something to the effect of “not in a preseason game.” Also, SI did a profile of Calvin Hill in the 70’s, possibly early 80’s (you can find it in their archives). Good running back for the Cowboys and father of Grant Hill. He was asked if he was ever scared playing in the NFL and the reply was no. Pause….(paraphrasing again) Hill then said “Well, we were playing the Bears once and Butkus was furious at a ball placement so he picked up the ball and moved it back a foot or so and refs left it were he put it! I said to myself, if the refs are intimidated by this guy, maybe I should be, too.”

[@DeepDishPizza]

Dick Butkus a true American Legend.

[@reidfarrill3917]

A true NFL icon. Full of heart and charachter. An all time great.

[@anthonygambitta6220]

An icon of the game. RIP sir.

[@MarkKrauklis]

R.I.P. Mr. Butkus!!!🥰🇺🇲 Greatest middle linebacker EVER bar none!!!🥰🇺🇲🥰🇺🇲🥰🇺🇲

[@your_royal_highness]

I saw him at O’Hare during his playing days talking animatedly with someone. I had long hair (this was the 60’s, if you catch my drift). I was looking at him from about 30 feet away and his head did not move, but his eyes darted in my direction and something told me to NOT go near him. I am 6’ tall and he looked frickin’ huge.

[@MartyLoughlinTWK]

So cool that my city of Chicago had 3 of the top 10 middle linebackers to ever play the game and it all started with the immortal #51. RIP Dick Butkus. You'll be sorely missed.

[@larrymcardle]

I'm going to assume you've never heard of Bill George, the OG MLB? He invented the position and the 4-3 defense, elected to the HOF in 1974.

[@RICHBLACKCOCK]

@@larrymcardle George on the `63 BEARS NFL CHAMPIONSHIP team that was loaded with PETITBONE, O`BRADOVICH, BILL WADE, GALLIMORE etc., & uh TE name DITKA!

[@johnnygrind77]

I'm an 80s kid and back then you were a fan of one of 3 teams: 9ers, Raiders, or Da Bears. A lot of my friends and I were Bears fans, especially with the Super Bowl Shuffle and the John Hughes movies. I never got to see Dick Butkus play, but no matter what team you cheer for, you had all the respect in the world for that man. I did however see him on the show My Two Dads often! haha God Bless you, ya beautiful animal!

[@catherinewilliams9680]

He was hysterical in his guest appearance on Night Court. RIP Dick

[@whitneyhall4744]

When you knew the Chicago Bears were going to be on TV..you smiled and counted the days till the game..your eyes were fixed on him play..a NFL Legend, Hall of Famer, and Best Middle Linebacker in NFL history

[@Noland55]

Well said. He must have reached out & encouraged the Bears to win.

[@nicoalexander774]

As a Niners fan, I always admired how great the Bears defenses were for multiple decades! People always say the Steeler’s culture is defense, which it is. But we forget about that in Bean town, it’s the same standard. RIP Legend! ❤ ❤

[@DeepDishPizza]

Don’t you find it fascinating that the Niners headquarters is right down the road from me here in Youngstown?

[@kyledabearsfan]

Bears, Steelers, Niners. What amazing history. Its incredible in times like this that you see football come together to remember the life of a truly great player. Cheers.

[@moonytheloony6516]

When I was a lad I was raised with stories of three people in sports...Hank Aaron, Mario Andretti, and Dick Butkus... He was born in Chicago, raised in Chicago where he unleashed an unholy football terror at CVS High School where he earned Player of the Year honors in 1959; and continued to inflict his brand of gridiron carnage at the University of Illinois where he helped the Fighting Illini win the 1963 Rose Bowl and became a consensus two-time All-American in his final two years of college football. When Dick Butkus became a Chicago Bear in 1965 he introduced himself to the NFL by redefining the linebacker position collecting 1,020 tackles, 27 fumbles (then, an NFL Record) and 22 interceptions in a 9-year career in which he was named to the Pro Bowl 8 times, projecting a new level of horror into every opposing offense that faced him on Sundays, with hits that registered on the Richter Scale; as an NFL head coach you had to account for him, because the alternative was not an option under any circumstances. From 20 yards out from the line of scrimmage, and sideline to sideline is where #51 roamed, lurked, prowled, menaced, hunted, chased, collided, executed, struck and punished with impunity. It was David Deacon Jones of all people who claimed on record that Dick Butkus didn't want to put you in the hospital, instead he wanted to put you in the cemetery and this testimony comes from a guy who used the head slap in his opponents, but I digress. That's one helluva endorsement from one helluva defensive end, just sayin'... He was the greatest linebacker of his generation and remains one of the greatest linebackers that the NFL has ever seen. When Butkus retired after the 1973 season he was already a Legend who paved the path for those who would follow him and excel with names like Lambert, Ham, Gradishar, Brazile, Carson, Taylor, Jackson, Tippett, Mecklenburg, Singletary, D. Thomas, Bennett, Lloyd, Greene, Seau, Brooks, Z. Thomas, Lewis, Harrison, Urlacher, Briggs, Miller and many others. Saying Dick Butkus is from Chicago is a gross understatement, because Dick Butkus IS Chicago in every sense of the word. The Midway's Greatest Monster...

[@namenotavailable7365]

Butkus. He was the symbol of the NFL for me in the early 70s growing up. And I was a Cowboys fan.

[@rigothompsonthompson1328]

Butkus waS Moby Dick in a goldfish bowl. He remains the gold standard of linebackers. Unfortunately, he only played for 9 years. Those of us who got to see him play will never forget him. RIP

[@twillis449]

Dick Butkus - a true Monster of the Midway. RIP Dick.

[@tjdent7166]

His ability to grab the snap count was amazing. Transferring from football’s scariest player to retirement also was amazing. I am lucky enough have seen him play live. Other team playing the Bears that Sunday would concentrate on Butkus, Butkus, Butkus Monday to Sunday kickoff.

[@adamneumann248]

Might just be a legend, but I was told that he relished any chance to tackle rookies. After demolishing them, he'd stare at them on the ground and say: "Welcome to the NFL."

[@kyledabearsfan]

Butkus personified everything that old school Chicago Defense meant. He was a monster of the midway. Hopefully he's up there smiling with Sweetness. Bear Down.

[@Tecumseh4-k2z]

Still in shock, even at his 80 years

[@TTony-tu6dm]

I remember an old NFL film where they were discussing Butkus. One of the commentators, I can’t remember who, said “Dick Butkus was the best player I ever saw. I’m convinced he’s the best player who ever played”. If you saw him play you could believe that. It amazes me to this day that the 1969 Bears had Gale Sayers and Dick Butkus and won one game.

[@twillis449]

While the Bears have had a succession of great middle linebackers, with the exception of Sid Luckman Bears QBs have mostly been forgettable.

[@moonytheloony6516]

It does not amazing me when I look at their '69 roster. That team was awful. What's amazing in a sad sense, is that they were both drafted in 1965. Arguably the best draft in the history of the Chicago Bears. George Halas for all the reverence he gets did a very poor job of building a team around those two. He made some awful personel decisions including not naming George Allen as his successor to the head coach position, opting for a poindexter named Vince Dooley instead...it takes brains to make these decisions. It's a team of contradictions...from a 1965 perspective, the Bears should have been a contender by Super Bowl III, IV and perhaps even V, but they weren't because one LB and one RB will not carry a team to victory very often. Sayers' injury drastically cut his career short but even before that, they were not an elite team in the NFL. Halas, as an owner dropped the ball horribly and continued to do so throughout the 1970s...firstly by being sued by Dick Butkus. Then, in '75 came Walter Payton of all people, who had to endure 11 seasons to finally get a Lombardi trophy.

[@TTony-tu6dm]

@@twillis449 Truth. As you probably know Butkus didn’t have kind words for Bear management on his retirement and in retaliation Chicago did not retire his number. Doug Buffone (a decent player himself) wore 51 for a number of years. The Bears finally came to be their senses and retired it for Butkus

[@TTony-tu6dm]

@@moonytheloony6516 Excellent analysis and right on target. Bobby Douglas baby!

[@bencromwell707]

Dick is a Icon R.I.P. 👑

[@DannyP-dm1pw]

Lunch break yesterday I watched NFL Films thing with LT, Ray Lewis, Bellichek all talking about best Linebackers to play game and Dick was spoken of. Then I watched a recent interview of him talking about the 2023 HOF class. I got in from work and find out he passed. Just weird out of nowhere I started watching clips of him earlier that day. I'm over 40 so of course I remember him in commercials too and he was also on the teen show Hang Time on NBC as the basketball coach for like a season or two before Reggie Theus came in

[@Nautilus1972]

“I never tried to hurt anyone ….. unless, it was, y’know …. Like a playoff game.” - Dick Butkus

[@bobma6342]

Which he never played in

[@FJBF1998]

All time great player and all time great shitposter on Twitter. That man was hilarious lol. RIP legend.

[@charlitovar8166]

I remember seeing DB on an episode or two of Growing Pains, i think it was... N even now, i still recall CTFU at his character. It was hilarious. He was a real fun guy to watch, in every facet of his life and career. 😢 🕊❤#51

[@alexamerling79]

When you think Chicago Bears you think Walter Payton and Dick Butkus. Rest in peace legend. Glad we could get that win for you Thursday.

[@Highlander-s5p]

He joins his brothers , legends all, Walter Payton , Gayle Sayers , Brian Piccolo, and so many more , The Bears may very well be the Champions of the Heaven football league now .

[@lfd_eng9219]

Watched a clip on him...one those greatest hits compilations...he said they would hit people as hard as they could, grind a bit more when on the ground, and then spit in the ear-hole of their helmets! Definitely would have been flagged every play these days...but man...he definitely defined what the "Monsters of the Midway" were founded upon! Rest easy, Animal!!!!

[@scottrogoway7034]

the very best!

[@4rounder312]

he played in an era when ships were made of wood and men were made of steel

[@edubb7774]

He would still kill it if he playd today..

[@maxpuppy96]

I saw him play, he terrorized teams, but the Bears never put a team around him. LT was the best but Butkus was right behind him. At the end of his career his knees were so bad that he never practiced just played on Sundays.

[@3wildmonkeysmommy]

Two things about Butkus. When you watch clips of him playing, notice how every time anybody tried to block him they hit him in the knees. Also he won the Defensive Player of the Year on a team that went 1 and 13. They won one game.... no team wanted to play them..

[@tjdent7166]

Exactly so. Truthful players from that era freely admit taking out his knees was their only chance. Double teaming him didn’t work. The only alternative was taking out the knees. Probably the last two possibly three years of his career he played on knees.

[@tjdent7166]

Right on the money

[@uncool13]

Unitas said something to the Bears defensive huddle about what they were planning with a smile. Dick's immediate response "how to break your neck"

[@bballerforever]

I like Rich Eisen but he was only FOUR y/o when Butkus retired so he couldn’t have appreciated how great #51 was when he played.

[@uncleflansy5621]

That quickness of mind to sarcastically try to hand the ball to his opponent after catching that botched PAT just shows how funny he was.

[@richj011]

He got married out of H.S. and was going to go to Notre Dame but they didn't having housing for couples and he went to Illinois

[@scottfors1450]

The Monster of Midway

[@One-eyedFats]

I have one of those newspaper grills! 🥳🙌

[@JeffreyTheTaylor]

Odd facts; he kicked two XP during his career, only played on two winning teams, never played in a playoff game. Different era. RIP.

[@ShelbyBaby27]

I want mustaches around the league in his honor

[@Ripr620]

Bill Bradley was badass too

[@michaelrosa2015]

Sounds like off the field, he was a teddy bear of a person.

[@mikek7050]

Dick Butkus is dead. In unrelated news the grim reaper is in critical condition.

[@davidmitchell6873]

Brooks and Butkus. That really sucks.

[@jchristi2772]

Hamburger...The Motion Picture, cult classic

[@DeepDishPizza]

What?

[@jchristi2772]

Google it and watch it, prob 1987 @@DeepDishPizza

[@douggauzy6258]

That is a foolish foolish way to look at Heaven . That’s not heaven - it’s not about us .

[@danielnelson2820]

Back when football was great! NFL is a soft league now! Not as fun to watch as years past was.

[@703390]

For Rich Iseman to argue to go when he’s 80 he makes it sounds like he was super young Sure I understand your old up there an age as well but like 80 years old that means you’re basically dead The average age, the American is 70 So for him to go at 80 it was his time to go

[@davidmitchell6873]

Whose Rich Iseman? I'm listening to Rich Eisen. With any luck you'll go soon to.

[@MarkKrauklis]

I agree with Rich Eisen! I think that Butkus was relaying audibles from heaven to Justin Fields last night!!🥰 They (da Bears) finally won one!!🥰🇺🇲🥰🇺🇲🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈🏈🥰🥰🥰

[@sivanbshriki9381]

it isn't buttkiss?