Canton welcomes 24th Bear
Linebacker Singletary lauded as 'Hall of Fame person'
Posted: Saturday August 01, 1998 12:19 PM
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Singletary made the most starts by a defensive player (172) in Bears history Jonathan Daniel/Allsport |
LA CROSSE, Wisconsin (AP) -- Mike Singletary was one of the greatest
linebackers in NFL history -- and that's why he's going into the Pro
Football Hall of Fame Saturday.
Former coaches and teammates know him as a great person in addition to a
great player.
"He's as deserving as any linebacker that's played the game, but he's been
a Hall of Fame person his whole life," said former Chicago Bears coach Mike
Ditka, now coach of the New
Orleans Saints. "His character and off-the-field conduct is exemplary."
Singletary's 12-year career included selection to 10 consecutive Pro Bowls
(1983-92) and the most starts by a defensive player (172) in Bears history.
Singletary, 39, is the 12th NFL linebacker and fourth from the Bears to be
inducted, joining Dick Butkus, George Connor and Bill George. The Bears
have 24 Hall of Fame members, the most of any NFL team.
Singletary is the second player from the Bears' 1986 championship team to
be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Walter Payton, the NFL's all-time
leading rusher, was elected in 1993.
"It's nice to see a nice guy going in for something that he's done on the
field and off the field also," Payton said.
Singletary was selected to the NFL Team of the '80s by the Pro Football
Hall of Fame Board of Selectors, earned Defensive Player of the Year honors
in 1985 and '88 by The Associated Press and was the 1990 NFL Man of the
Year for playing excellence and off-the-field contributions to the
community.
The Bears' defensive captain from 1983-92 finished either first or second
on the team in tackles in his final 11 seasons.
His 10 Pro Bowls are the most by a Bears player.
"Nobody studied any harder, nobody worked any harder to make the Bears a
good defense than Mike Singletary," said Ditka, who compiled a 112-68
record and won six division titles with the Bears from 1982-92. "It became
a passion to him, and it's good to see guys with that kind of passion
rewarded."
"Mike has a very strong conviction to life and to his religion, and that
drove him," said former Bears linebacker Ron Rivera, who started the only
two games Singletary missed during his career in 1986.
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