Chicago Bears: 15 Greatest First Round Picks of All-Time

Gale Sayers was part of the greatest draft any team has ever had in the history of the NFL. The Bears landed the third and fourth pick in 1965. They used them on Sayers and Dick Butkus (more on him later). Sayers became one of the great running backs in the history of the sport. He would have been even more iconic if injuries didn’t derail his career.

Sayers only played seven seasons in the NFL, but really only played five, as he totaled just four games in 1970 and 1971. Sayers was grace personified. He glided through defenses like nothing the NFL had ever seen.

In his first 64 games, he scored 56 touchdowns, he averaged over five yards a carry, he was a phenomenal threat catching passes out of the backfield and was even more terrifying returning punts and kicks.

Sayers is probably most famous for his relationship with Brian Piccolo and on the field, he’s remembered for his six-touchdown performance against the San Francisco 49ers.

The true NFL historian knows Sayers greatness and puts him among the great backs of all-time, but if he was able to be healthy for another three or four seasons, he’d be considered one of the top 3 or 4 backs to ever play the game.