The Greatest Bears of All-Time By Number (00-4)

Obviously, this isn't an original idea. Many other sites and publications have done this including The Mile High Report and Sports Illustrated. But I thought tackling the idea for our favorite team would be a unique challenge and different from many of the other lists out there.

And rather than doing this in 100 individual posts I thought maybe 20 posts would be the best way to do it. I'd just list my picks and some short reasons why, and then open it for discussion.

Staley was a bit of a tongue-and-cheek choice. After finding no one has ever worn 00 or 0 it made it the only choice. Skipping over two good kickers at number 1 and 2 wasn't easy but the case can be made for these old-old school Bears and I, personally, like to keep the past alive. Nagurski was a no-brainer, pretty much if your jersey is retired, then my work is done on that number, which is nice since the Bears have the most retired numbers in the league! Finally, Harbaugh was an easy choice, he currently ranks 1st in team history in attempts, 2nd in yards, tied for 6th (with Cutler) for TD passes and 8th in completion percentage (among QBs w/ more than 300 attempts) plus he has a winning record, which can't be said of many post-merger Bears QBs.

So here they are: my first 5 great Bears by jersey number:

00 - Staley Da Bear - Click his name to read his incredibly cheesy and pun-filled bio on the official Bears site.

1 - Paddy Driscoll, HB (1920, 1926-29) - A Hall of Fame quarterback and while his best years may not have come for the Bears (rather the rival Chicago Cardinals) he gets the nod. Honorable mention: Jeff Jaeger, K, (1996-99)

2 - Edward "Dutch" Sternaman, HB (1920-30) Sternaman played a major role in developing the Bears and helping them win a lot in their early days. He currently ranks 28th in franchise history in scoring. Not bad. Honorable Mention - Paul Edinger, K (2000-04)

3 - Bronko Nagurski, FB (1930-37, '43) - Seriously, if you wanna dispute this then you know nothing of Bears history. Read the post linked on his name, READ IT!!

4 - Jim Harbaugh, QB (1987-93) - One of the best QBs this franchise has ever seen. Arguably 2nd best after Luckman. Captain Comeback!