Brian Urlacher was a legit first ballot hall of famer. Although it may be difficult to see just by looking at his stat line, Urlacher was one of the greatest defensive players to ever play for a team known for its outstanding defense. I am guessing that his greatness may have been lost on those who did not watch him play every down. I'm pretty sure fans throughout the league knew Urlacher by his reputation but they could not tell you exactly why he was so good. If he were traded in his prime, I would have told that fan base that they were getting a lightning fast monster, with excellent instincts for the ball, who could rush the passer and cover receivers, and has excellent leadership skills. But they would need to actually see him to truly understand.

Urlacher was a master of his craft. He is also a master of the obvious.

When asked about Khalil Mack's first performance as a member of the home town Bears, Urlacher said, "He’s a bad dude, man."

Image from the AP via The Baxter Bulletin.

Yep that about sums it up.

But I think everyone knew that. But did they really know just how bad a dude he is? I know I didn't. When the trade went down, I was chatting with @broncofan99. I knew about Mack and was shocked the Bears landed one of the top defensive players in the game. (I had him ranked #2 behind Donald, @broncofan99 had him at 3 behind Donald and Miller). Whatever, he's a bad dude.

But I really only knew him by reputation. I had not seen very many of his games.

And then I saw his first two games as a Bear.

Holy Shit!

Now I know why his former Raider teammates were so pissed that he was traded. I don't think anyone could have possibly explained what a game wrecker the guy is. But I think I can... at least if you are old enough to remember Tecmo Super Bowl (the greatest video game in the history of time!).

If you played Tecmo Super Bowl back in the day, you know that Bo Jackson was going to rush for 300 yards, Jerry Rice was going to score 12 times a game, and Lawrence Taylor was an unstoppable force that should not be allowed in any video game ever. By the time the QB yelled his third "Hut!" LT was already in the backfield. I don't know how the game designers programmed in the turbo boost a snort of some good old fashioned coke provides, but damn it, they did it.

Image from Polygon.com

So if you want to know what Khalil Mack is like, turn on Tecmo Super Bowl, slect the Giants, control LT and sack the QB 22 times in a row.

That is Khalil Mack.

“He’s a bad dude, man."