Top Ten Defensive Players in Chicago Bears History

9. Ed Sprinkle

Ed Sprinkle may not be one of the top ten Bears defenders on most people’s list, but he makes my list. Sprinkle was a game changer. He was the first great defensive player in the history of the NFL. He made defense exciting and was the first great pass rusher in the history of the sport.

George Halas called him the greatest pass rusher he had ever seen- high praise from Papa Bear. Sprinkle was known as a dirty player, but it wasn’t so much that he was dirty, but he was a rough opponent, being dubbed the “meanest man in pro football.”

Sprinkle was a member of the 1940s all-decade team and a dominant player that Bears fans need to know.