4 former Chicago Bears headline 2024 Hall of Fame candidates
By Peter Jurich
Chicago Bears Julius Peppers finished his career with a Hall of Fame resume
Fortunately, both Devin Hester and Jared Allen will have another shot to earn their gold jackets next year, but they will have to go through a similar runoff voting process that they went through in 2023. However, a new set of Hall of Fame eligible players will be up for induction in 2024, including former Indianapolis Colts quarterback, Andrew Luck and Super Bowl 50 champion, DeMarcus Ware.
Among the players who will be eligible for the first time next season include two all-time great Chicago Bears legends in defensive end Julius Peppers and wide receiver Brandon Marshall. Both players were only in Chicago for a handful of years, but their impact on the Bears, and the NFL as a whole, are undeniable.
Julius Peppers, who played for the Carolina Panthers, Chicago Bears, and Green Bay Packers over a 17-year NFL career, is currently fourth all-time in total career sacks with 159.5, just 0.5 less than the third-place holder in the late great Kevin Greene. In his four seasons in Chicago, Peppers played, and started, all 64 possible contests, posting 37.5 sacks and 47 tackles for loss over that span. That sack total makes him ninth all-time in sacks in a Bears uniform, just 1.5 ahead of Khalil Mack.
The former college basketball player was one of the more physically intimidating players of his generation, as the defensive end measured at 6’7″ and nearly 290 lbs. The second overall pick in 2002, Peppers lived up to expectations as a freakish athlete and a productive pass rusher after an impressive, multi-sport career at the University of North Carolina. Peppers is still only one of two players who played in the Final Four and a Super Bowl along with Donovan McNabb.