Dick Butkus

The national football League is over 100 years old, and in that time, football fans have enjoyed some breathtaking games, spectacular plays, some of the most colorful athletes we've ever known, and more than a few  moments of spectator sport agony. In 1994,  The NFL participated in publishing a huge coffee table book reflecting on the first 75 years of the league. And to write the forward to that book, they chose legendary Chicago bears, middle linebacker Dick Butkus. Now I grew up in the Chicago area, so I knew the name Dick butkus very well -- and his reputation.  An opponent once said that when he was tackling you, Dick Butkus was aiming not to put you in the hospital but the cemetery. But when I met him to talk about that book, I found him to be a very warm and personable guy with lots of fun stories.