The Bears parting ways with Brian Urlacher has gone off like a bomb here. After months of speculation and signs from both sides that the end was nigh, it is still huge news. He was the face of the Bears for 13 years and one of their most beloved players ever. We can't responsibly deny that there was an erosion of skills and an increasing amount of time on the injured list. (Hey, you try playing middle linebacker in the NFL for 13 years). Once the short term grief blows over he will resume his place in the Bears pantheon.

The Bears are one of the original franchises and have a long and rich history. If you had to distill it down to individuals you could make a pretty short list. Halas. Luckman. Nagurski. Butkus. Ditka. Sayers. Payton. Singletary. Urlacher. That's not a bad lineage.

Is Brian Urlacher a perfect person? No, no more than any of the rest of us are. What he was was a close enough to perfect middle linebacker, running down opposing running backs and wide receivers with his sideline to sideline speed.

The day the Bears drafted him I was refereeing soccer. Some soccer dad who thought it was the wrong kind of football had an electronic gizmo to his ear following the draft. "The Bears drafted a strong safety from New Mexico, Brian Urlacher," he announced. "Who?" we said collectively. It didn't take him long to let us know who he was.

Personally this is my favorite Brian Urlacher memory. His father left the family early. His mother remarried and the man became a surrogate father to Brian. After Urlacher received his signing bonus he showed up at their house driving a tripped out monster pickup truck. "Nice truck, Brian," his stepfather said. Brian flipped him the keys. "I bought it for you." Now how can you not cheer for a guy like that?