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Bear essentials

Brian Urlacher, the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year, sits down with The Real Chicago to talk about everything from the perfect hit to being a big kid and the desire to shop on Michigan Avenue

By Trent Modglin

Photos by Chris Bernacchi / Sportics

Note: When The Real Chicago went to press, the Bears were the talk of the NFL, sitting at 8-1 and in line for home-field advantage in the NFC.

Q: Chris Berman from ESPN once told me that the NFL is more fun when the Bears are winning. What do you think about that?

A: I think he’s right. I know it’s more fun for me when we’re winning. There’s just so many Bears fans out there. At road games, they’re everywhere, no matter where we’re playing. I think it’s because Chicago is such a big area, that people keep track of us when they leave and go other places. When the Bears were really good back in the day, everyone kind of took to them, and it hasn’t stopped.

Q: Do you ever get tired of all the comparisons? No matter what you guys do as a defense, you can never seem to step out from that shadow of the ’85 team.

A: (Sighs) Yeah, we’re a different team though. They were great in their own right, in their own time. But this is a different time. We’re a totally different team than they were. But at the same time, it’s an honor because they were so great and they won a championship. But we’re different teams, we play a different style of defense than they did, different opponents. It does get a little old because all some people talk about is how many points and yards they gave up. It’s not ’85 anymore (laughs). It’s 2006.

Q: What’s the ideal hit you can put on somebody, the kind you dream about?

A: Well, the one where they don’t see you coming is the best one, when they’re looking around or looking back for the ball. But the ones I like are the ones when they see you coming, you square them up and put them on their back. I like those the best because he sees you coming, it’s not a cheap shot and he has a chance to gather himself. But the biggest ones are when they don’t see you coming. Those can be fun.

Q: Have you ever felt like you’re in the zone? I remember Michael Jordan used to talk about finding that level where he could seemingly do no wrong and be able to anticipate things before they happened.

A: It’s different in football, I think, because you can’t predict as easily when there are so many things an offense can do. But yeah, I’ve felt like I’ve known what an offense is going to do before a play started. A bunch of times really, and I’ve actually been right for a change a few times to where I know what’s going on. You still have to read you keys, but it gives you a jump on the play.

Q: Who is the toughest running back you’ve faced?

A: That’s tough because there are so many good backs in this league. I think LaDainian Tomlinson is the best out there. We don’t play against him very often, but he’s the best. He does whatever he wants to do. There’s just so many guys. Edgerrin James is good. I was sore as hell after the game we played against Arizona. We had so many big collisions in that one.

Q: Can you sense the energy you guys have created in town with the fast start this season?

A: Oh, you can sense it. Everywhere we go people are excited. It’s fun. Everything in the paper is about us. We obviously want to keep it going, but the pressure is going to start to build up. We’ve got to keep doing our jobs, but it’s not hard to focus when you’ve got a coach like ours.

Q: That being said, do you ever feel overwhelmed with all this, your life as a celebrity?

A: I’ve gotten over all that. I think I’ve grown up a little bit, hopefully, in the last few years. You get used to (the attention), and it’s important to know what you can and can’t do (in the limelight).

Q: How do you think you’re different as a player and a person now than when you were as a rookie back in 2000?

A: As a player, I’ve gotten better every year I’ve been in the league. I should get better. I mean, I see more plays every year at middle linebacker, so every year I should get better and I’ll continue to get better. Personally, I haven’t changed that much to tell you the truth. I’ve got the same friends I did when I was a rookie, besides some new guys in the locker room. I’ve got a different house. That’s about it.

Q: You still making a habit of scaring your brother around the house? One of your teammates called you the biggest 10-year old kid they know.

A: Yeah, I get him good every once in a while. We still screw around a lot. I don’t think that’s ever going to change. That’s just the way we are. We like to have fun. ... I know when it’s time to concentrate and be serious, but at the same time, I know how to have a good time, and I think my teammates will tell you that. We play paintball in back of my house a lot. There’s some good hiding spots in the forest back there.

Q: Do you guys still have all the games down in the basement? The Golden Tee, the pool table, ping pong, air hockey and all that?

A: Yeah, I have a separate game room now at my new house. Everything’s in there. It’s pretty nice.

Q: Pretty popular too, I’ll bet. How many square feet are we talking?

A: (Laughs) It’s a good size. It’s a good size.

Q: What is the one thing that a lot of people don’t know about life as a football player?

A: I don’t think many people view this as a job. When I tell them I have to go to work, they say, ‘What do you mean? You have to go to practice?’ No, I have to go to work. I get here at 7 a.m., we meet until noon, we practice from 1:30 till 3:30 and then we work out or get in the cold tub or get treatment. People will ask you if you want to go out at night, and I’m like, ‘What? I’ve got to work.’ People don’t realize that it’s a job, that we get up at 6:30 every morning and come to work. I try and do the right things. I don’t go out during the week, I take care of myself as best I can. They say, ‘Oh, c’mon, it’s football. What do you mean you have to go to work?’ But we work on our days off, we work on the weekends too. We put in more time than people might think.

Q: Is there anything you’d like to do on a random Saturday in the city if no one recognized you?

A: Oh, I would love to go down to Michigan Avenue and just walk up and down. I’ve been down there for some things at Nike Town, but that’s about it. I’d like to go down there shopping one of these days. I’ve never gotten a chance to take my kids down there and kind of walk around and look. I just can’t do it, man. That’s the one thing, just go down and screw around downtown and sight-see and all that.

Q: Do you ever get a chance to hang out in the city much?

A: Yeah, every once in a while. We stay in a hotel downtown on the Saturday nights before games. Gibson’s is always up there on my list. Volare is an Italian place I like to go now. Joe’s Stone Crab, Smith & Wollensky, you can’t go wrong anywhere you go down there. They’re all good.

Q: I can assume it’s a decent-sized bill when you all head out for dinner?

A: Oh yeah. Anytime you get a bunch of fatties together, it’s going to expensive. Somehow, I always end up paying though.

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