NFLNFL Chicago Bears Trading Cards1965–1973Hall of Fame · 1979

Dick Butkus

Dick Butkus on the wall — for the Bears fan who knows the meanest middle linebacker ever.

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Career snapshot

Defense: 22 INT · 27 fumble recoveries · 1,020+ tackles (unofficial)

Accolades

★ Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame (1979, first ballot)

★ 2× NFL Defensive Player of the Year (1969, 1970)

★ 8× Pro Bowler (1965–1972, consecutive)

★ 5× First-Team All-Pro

★ 27 career fumble recoveries — NFL record at retirement

★ NFL 1960s All-Decade Team · NFL 1970s All-Decade Team

★ NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team · NFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team

★ The Butkus Award (top NCAA linebacker) named in his honor since 1985

All Dick Butkus products

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The card collector's view

1966 Philadelphia #31 is Butkus’s rookie card and one of the most iconic vintage football pieces of the 1960s — a high-grade copy is a cornerstone of any Bears or vintage NFL collection. The 1967 Philadelphia and 1968 Topps cards from his DPOY-era flagship pieces are key chases. For premium collectors, his Panini National Treasures patch-autographs and Bears retrospective jersey relics are the high-end memorabilia options.

About Dick Butkus at FreshDCards

Dick Butkus played nine seasons for the Bears at middle linebacker and made eight Pro Bowls in his first eight years. Knee injuries forced him out at 31, but in those nine seasons he established the modern template for the position: 22 career interceptions, 27 fumble recoveries (an NFL record when he retired), and a tackling reputation that left a generation of running backs in fetal position. NFL Defensive Player of the Year twice (1969, 1970), Hall of Fame first ballot in 1979, and the Butkus Award given to college football’s top linebacker every year since 1985.