Over on the Yahoo Sports Shutdown Corner blog, they listed The 10 Finest Names in the National Football League. It's a fun read, and a nice little list, however no Bears made the cut. I can't really disagree. Are there any interesting names on the current roster? Major Wright has an authoritative feel to it and it actually outranks number one on the Yahoo list. Jay Cutler has a sharp sounding last name, (I'll give you a sec to get my pun) and a few other names are nice, but not All Time nice. After the jump I'll give my Top 10 Chicago Bears names, and be sure to chime in with a few of your own.
I had one rule, and that was no nicknames, but since it's my list I ended up breaking my rule. Not at first, but after a little research I realized I did. So deal with it.
10) Lionel Antoine, T 1972-1978 - I'll be honest, Lionel Antione made my list just because I like saying Lionel Antione. Lionel Antione. Go ahead, you say it out loud. Lionel Antione, Lionel Antione, Lionel Antione... it just rolls of the tongue.
9) Cap Boso, TE 1987-1991 - You just don't see too many Cap's these days. His name would have been in place back in the old days. And please don't tell me 1987 was the old days.
8) Hugh Blacklock, T 1920-1925 - That tough sounding double hard consonant in his last name isn't the only reason I put him on the list. My eyes played a trick on me the first time I read his name.
7) J.L. Shank, HB 1920 - Old #18 was hard to get any info on through Google. I found a Dr., an author, and something about prostitution, but as far as Chicago Bear J.L. Shank, not too much. Shank would have a great name for a punter.
6) Jon Kilgore, P 1968 - And speaking of punters, Kilgore should have been a name for a fullback. That name makes me think of a bettering ram that will hit you so hard he could murderize you.
5) Owen Goodnight, QB 1946 - The former Bears QB has a middle school named after him. But in my opinion, he missed his calling as a hard hitting safety. Imagine the knockout blows someone named Goodnight could deliver, and imagine Bears radio play by play man Jeff Joniak giving his own excited take on those hits.
4) Ronnie Bull, FB 1962-1970 - What a cool name for a fullback... Bull. The tough as nails sounding last name is actually 10th all time in rushing yards for Chicago and 8th all time in attempts.
3) Dick Butkus, LB 1965-1973 - How do I not place the greatest all time middle linebacker on any list, regardless of criteria, at number one? I don't know. I think it would have been too easy slapping Dick at #1. The last name sounds tough enough, but then having the first name Dick... his parents must have known little Dick was heading for greatness.
2) Micheal Stonebreaker, LB 1991 - It seems such a shame with a name like Stonebreaker that he was only able to record 8 tackles in his lone year in Chicago. But what a perfect last name for a linebacker.
1) Bronko Nagurski, FB,LB,T 1930-1937, 1943 - Am I the only Bears fan that didn't know Bronko's given name was Bronislaw? Shame on me for not knowing my Bears history, but for the purpose of the list, I'm not changing my #1. The only other profession I can think of when hearing his name is that of Hit Man. Not free safety Chris Harris Hit Man, but the real harbinger of death type hit man.