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Post by davehibb on May 3, 2021 8:42:41 GMT -5
Chicago Bears Ring of Honour
QB Ralph McNeil #9
RT Jack Fonda #72
C Henry Hitchcock #55
CB Kyle Fuller #23
LB Kenyon Farley #52
K Kendrick Whalen #2 |
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Post by davehibb on May 3, 2021 8:54:14 GMT -5
QB Ralph McNeil #9 Drafted 3rd overall, in the 2017 RZB draft, Ralph McNeil would go on to play quarterback for the Bears for 11 seasons, leading Chicago to consecutive bowl games and 7 playoff appearances.
A 3-year starter (he also played punter in his Freshman year), McNeil set 77 NCAA records during his time at Baylor, but still had his detractors entering the league. Many scouts and league executives raised concerns over his height, arm strength and a childhood eye injury but McNeil would prove them wrong, throwing for over 43,000yds, 300 plus TDs and posting a passer rating over 95 on five occasions, whilst playing in the Windy City.
McNeil was even more impressive during the playoffs, throwing 29 touchdowns in just 13 games, completing over 67% of his passes and leading the Bears to their first BearGrowlz Trophy and posting a passer rating over 100 in 5 of his 7 postseasons in Chicago.
A fierce competitor and a leader on the field, McNeil often put the Bears on his back and won games on his own, mounting game winning drives, perhaps most notably in Seattle during the 2019 NFC Championship game, where he marched the Bears 62yds down the field, setting up Jeremy Langford to put the Bears up 24-20 with just 29 seconds remaining.
McNeil would go on to lead the Bears to a 34-27 win over Andrew Luck and the Indianpolis Colts to lift the Beargrowlz Trophy going 32 of 42 for 365yds, 3 touchdowns, 2 interceptions and a 105.7 passer rating.
A year later and McNeil would lead the Bears to another famous win over Lawrence Perry and the mighty Seahawks in Seattle, this time in the Divisonal Round. Down 30-28, McNeil engineered the game winning drive, taking over 5 minutes off the clock on an 11 play, 57yd drive, finding Kevin White with an 8yd strike to set the Bears on their way to a 2nd consecutive bowl appearance.
After a slew of early miscues, the Bears found themselves 24-3 down going into the 4th quarter against a star studded Steelers squad but despite a rough day personally, McNeil helped rally Chicago to 21 unanswered points, tying things up late in the game, only for the Steelers to kick the winning field goal as time expired.
There was no fairytale ending this time and McNeil and the Bears would never get back to the big dance, as part way into his 12th season with the Bears, McNeil was traded to the Denver Broncos.
McNeil is held in the highest regard in the Windy City and is still holder of all the Bears major passing records, as well as being top 5 for many league passing marks too and whilst he's perhaps a little unfairly, rarely in the discussion for Canton, the Chicago Bears are proud to make quarterback Ralph McNeil, their inaugural Ring of Honor inductee.
Bears Stats
Reg. Season: GP 177, GS 176, 5905 att, 3755 comp, 63.6%, 43566 yds, 305 tds, 156 ints, 92.0 rat.
Playoffs: GP 13, GS 13, 451 att, 303 comp, 67.2%, 3634 yds, 29 tds, 12 ints, 102.0 rat
Career Stats
Reg. Season: GP 269, GS 256, 9013 att, 5577 comp, 61.9%, 63230 yds, 408tds, 229 ints, 87.3 rat
Playoffs: GP 14, GS 14, 485 att, 328 comp, 67.6%, 3862 yds, 30tds, 13 ints, 101.00 rat
Honours:
1 x League MVP (2020)
1 x Bowl MVP (2020)
1 x OPOY (2020)
1 x All Pro 1st Team QB (2020)
RZB Bowl Winner (2020)
All Time Records:
18 seasons in the RZB (11 with the Bears)
Games Started: 256 (2nd)
Attempts: 9013 (4th)
Completions: 5171 (4th)
Yards: 63,230 (3rd)
Touchdowns: 408 (5th)
20+ Throws: 892 (3rd) |
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Post by davehibb on May 3, 2021 10:14:44 GMT -5
RT Jack Fonda #72
Selected 9th overall in the inaugural 2016 RZB draft, Jack Fonda entered the league as an undersized but highly technical right tackle out of Missouri. Seen as a surprising pick in some quarters and slated by many to play center in the pros, Fonda would go on to anchor the right side of the Bears line for 14 seasons, winning 2 world championships along the way.
An elite technician at the position, Fonda also brought a toughness and blue collar mentality to the Bears offensive line and is ranked 2nd all time for Chicago in KRBs, KROs, pancake blocks and games started.
Fonda has simply been the best player at his position, not only for the Bears but in RZB history, ranking 1st in both KRBs and KROs for tackles, on his way to becoming a first ballot RZB HoF inductee.
Bears/Career Stats:
Reg. Season: GP 211, GS 211, KRB 439, KRO 1164, BPct 37.7, Pnck 55, SkA 53. Playoffs: GP18, GS 18, KRB 23, KRO 81, BPct 28.4, Pnck 3, SkA 5.
Honours:
5 x All Pro 1st Team OT (2019, 2022, 2023, 2024 & 2028) 2 x RZB Bowl Winner (2020 & 2029)
All Time Records:
14 seasons (all with the Bears) Key Run Blocks: 439 (9th - 1st among Tackles) Key Run Opportunities: 1164 (6th - 1st among Tackles) |
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Post by davehibb on May 3, 2021 12:30:23 GMT -5
Center Henry Hitchcock #55
Drafted with the 14th pick of the 2018 RZB draft, Henry Hitchcock would maul and brawl his was to the HoF, setting records and wracking up numerous honours along the way. Selected out of New Mexico, Hitchcock was a beast at the combine ranking 2nd in vertical leap, power clean, squat and 1st in the shuttle run and bench. Strong and nasty, Hitchcock anchored the Bears line for 14 seasons.
The Bears already seemed set at center, with Jalen Frazer, when they selected Hitchcock but the Chicago brass just couldn't pass up on the opportunity to select such a generational talent and #55 repaid them in spades by performing at an elite level for a team record 213 starts across 14 seasons. He would however miss out on the Bears first bowl appearance due to an injury in the divisional round of the playoffs. A year later, he would get to the bowl, only for the Bears to be bested by Pittsburgh, though he would finally get the ring his career deserved in the win over Pittsburgh in 2029.
Hitchcock would set franchise records for KRBs, KROs and pancake blocks and be nominated All Pro on 7 combined occasions, displaying a mean, no nonsense, never say day attitude that epitomises what the Chicago Bears are about.
Bears/Career Statistics:
Reg. Season: GP 214, GS 213, KRB 527, KRO 1438, BPct 36.6, Pnck 116, SkA 34. Playoffs: GP15, GS 15, KRB 43, KRO 112, BPct 38.4, Pck 5, SkA 2.
Honours:
4 x All Pro 1st Team OC (2022, 2023, 2024 & 2028) 3 x All Pro 2nd Team OC (2021, 2026 & 2029) RZB Bowl Winner (2029)
All time Records:
14 Seasons (all with Bears) Key run Blocks: 527 (2nd) Key run Opportunities: 1438 (1st) Pancake Blocks: 116 (2nd - 1st among centers) |
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Post by davehibb on May 4, 2021 13:00:53 GMT -5
CB Kyle Fuller #23
Fuller was already established as the Bears CB1 at the inception of the RZB in 2015 but in his 9 years in the league, he built a strong reputation as an aggressive cover corner, with exceptional ball skills, who wasn't afraid to step up in run support.
He holds the franchise record for interceptions (44), which is good enough for 7th on the All Time list (4th among cornerbacks), returning 6 for touchdowns (he also returned 2 punts and a fumble for touchdowns), but perhaps his biggest play came in the Bears first bowl win against the Colts, when with time expired, Fuller snared Andrew Luck's hail-mary pass in the Bears endzone to seal the game and deliver the BearGrowlz Trophy to Chicago.
Bears/Career Stats
Reg. Season: GP 137, GS 135, Tkl 541, Asst 158, Ints 44, Defn 85, PDPct 79.7 Playoffs: GP 10, GS 10, Tkl 30, Asst 13, Ints 4, Defn 4, PDPct 81.6
Honours
1 x All Pro 2nd Team Cornerback (2016) RZB Bowl Winner (2020)
All Time Records
Interceptions: 44 (7th - 4th among cornerbacks) |
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Post by davehibb on May 4, 2021 15:40:31 GMT -5
MLB Kenyon Farley #52
Selected with the 5th pick in the 2026 RZB Draft, Kenyon Farley would continue the proud tradition of great linebackers in Chicago. Farley could simply do it all. A violent hitter, Farley holds Bears franchise records for tackles (1052), assists (330) and forced fumbles (17), whilst also registering 23 sacks, picking off 19 passes and defending 91 more. Number 52 was the quintessential cover-2 middle linebacker for the Bears.
The 2027 Defensive Player of the Year, was a keen student of the game and ran the Bears defense on the field for 12 seasons. He shifted from MLB to SLB in 2032 (to accommodate another fine Bears linebacker, Bart Gonzalez), before injury eventually slowed him later in his career. Farley is one of only FOUR players to win 2 RZB Bowls with Chicago.
Bears/Career Stats
Reg. Season: GP 176, GS 147, Tkl 1052, Asst 330, Sack 23, Int 19, Defn 91, FF 17. Playoffs: GP12, GS 7, Tkl 66, Asst 10, Sack 1.0, Int 2, Defn 3.
Honours
DPOY 2027 1 x 1st Team All Pro ILB (2027) 3 x 2nd Team All Pro ILB (2028, 2029 & 2030) 2 x RZB Bowl Winner (2029 & 2037)
All Time Records:
12 Seasons (All With Bears)
Tackles 1052 (1st for Bears)
Assists 330 (1st Bears)
Passes Defensed 91 (4th Bears)
Interceptions 19 (7th Bears) |
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Post by davehibb on May 12, 2021 13:43:14 GMT -5
K Kendrick Whalen #2
Who could have ever imagined that when the Chicago Bears selected placekicker Kendrick Whalen, out of little old Graceland University, Iowa, with the 224th and final pick of the 2022 RZB draft, that Mr. Irrelevant would go on to become the franchise's all time leading scorer and win an RZB Championship!?
Well... That's exactly what happened!
During Whalen's 13 seasons in the Windy City, whilst often kicking in inhospitable conditions, he surpassed Bears greats Kevin Butler and Robbie Gould to become the franchise leader for field goals and points scored, whilst being voted All Pro twice and winning a world championship!
There were many standout performances (such as a 7 FG haul against the Texans in 2024) and clutch kicks in Whalen's career, perhaps most notably hitting on 4 consecutive field goals in the 4th Qtr of the 2029 conference semi final against Tampa Bay, to bring the Bears back from 24-13 down to win it 25-24 on a 47 yarder as time expired.
That game winning performance would put the Bears on course for an NFC championship win over Seattle enroute to lifting the BearGrowlz trophy, with the win over the Steelers in Blitz Bowl XXIII.
Bears/Career Stats:
Reg. Season: GP 208, FG 423, FGA 510, Pct 82.9, Long 56yd Playoffs: GP 12, FG 31, FGA 33, Pct 93.9, Long 53yd
Honours:
1 x 1st Team All Pro Kicker (2024) 1 x 2nd Team All Pro Kicker (2027) 1 x RZB Bowl Winner (2029)
All Time Records:
13 Seasons (All with Bears) Franchise Leader FGs (423) Franchise Leading Scorer (1769) |
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