Brian Urlacher Tells Us How He’d Stop Cam Newton And Peyton Manning In Super Bowl 50

Whenever Brian Urlacher was on the field, he always seemed to be doing two things: playing hard and having a good time. And since retiring from the Chicago Bears in 2013, he’s taken that same approach to his daily life, as well. Urlacher still pops up all over the place, including a brief stint as an analyst on Fox Sports 1, as well as his lucrative sponsorship deals.

But the dude can’t stay away from the game, and he is still just as invested as ever in what goes on in the NFL. Especially this year, as his former defensive coordinator — Ron Rivera — and the quarterback who beat his Bears team in the Super Bowl — Peyton Manning — are set to face each other in Super Bowl 50.

Uproxx Sports spent a few minutes with Urlacher discussing Peyton Manning vs. Cam Newton, what it’s like to play in a Super Bowl, playing for Ron Rivera, of course, his new hair.

What do you remember most about the week leading into the Super Bowl, and the whole experience?

It’s an amazing experience. We beat New Orleans in the NFC Championship, and we were able to watch the Patriots play the Colts, and the way that game ended was crazy. Then it starts to set in after that you’re playing in the Super Bowl. You never think it’s going to happen, especially if you’ve played so long and realize how hard it is to get to that game.

You have to get tickets, and you only get a certain amount of them, but everyone wants a ticket. You have to get everyone set up for the week. And you don’t know how much media is really involved. Every single day there’s availability, but it’s a huge deal. It’s a huge deal to play in this game. You do your TV stuff, and your radio stuff, but I tried to treat it like a normal week. I went to bed at 10:30 or 11 every night, just like I’d be playing in a game at home. I didn’t have any fun during the week. I watched some TV, and my family was there, which was cool. We had our normal Saturday night dinner.

If we’d have won it, it would’ve been a lot more fun. But I always say if I had to lose to somebody, I’m glad it was Peyton Manning.

Why’s that?

The type of person he is. The type of player he is. Everything he stands for is A-plus in my opinion. There’s nothing even questionable or borderline about what he does. He’s just a great guy, and if I had to lose to anybody, I’m glad it was him.

He’s had to adapt a lot the last few years as age has caught up to him, and he’s done a great job of extending his career. Is there a key to stopping this iteration of Peyton?

You’re not going to trick Peyton Manning at the line of scrimmage. He’s going to know what you’re doing, and you just have to try and get the best play possible. His mind hasn’t slowed down at all; if anything it’s just gotten better over the past few years. His arm strength is a little questionable now, but he still makes those throws down the field and puts the ball on the money when he has to. I think you have to pressure him. When you get pressure on any quarterback, it changes what they can do and how they see things down the field.

How would you defend a unique playmaker like Cam Newton? He’s got a completely different skillset than Manning does, and does so many things well.

They’re two different guys when you look at the way they influence the game. He’s tough. You know, mobile quarterbacks, or guys who can make plays with their legs just add that other element. But Cam can throw the ball, too. You have to try and pressure those guys, too, but at the risk of giving up a big play at any time. You put some coverage behind him, and he’ll expose you and hit Greg Olsen. But Wade Phillips is a great defensive coordinator, and I’m sure he has a good gameplan for those guys to try and stop Cam.

You had the opportunity to play for Ron Rivera for a little bit there, and he’s getting that chance now to coach in a Super Bowl as a head coach. Has he changed much over the years?

I don’t think he’s changed that much, honestly. He is who he is. He’s not going to try and be something he’s not. He’s going to run the football. He’s going to play good defense. He’s always been a player’s coach, and that hasn’t changed at all. His players love him. I loved playing for him. He’s just a great coach, cares about his guys, but he does what he does; he runs the ball on offense, and he plays good defense. That’s what he’s always going to do.

Any stories that stand out from your time with him?

I met Ron for the first time at the Pro Bowl when he was a linebackers coach for the Eagles. They got to those three NFC Championships in a row, and those were my first three years in the league. So, before he ever coached me on the Bears, he was my linebacker coach in the Pro Bowl. That was cool because he played for the Bears, and this was the first time I met him. It was cool because he was giving me the history of the Bears and everything. And then we hired him, and I was really happy to get to play for him.

He’s still a friend. We talk, and I’ll wish him best of luck when I can. I try to stay out of his hair as often as possible, but I have a ton of respect for him.

You’re in that long line of great linebackers that the Bears have had over the years, but was there any added pressure when you first came into the league to be that next great Bears defender?

I didn’t feel that there was. I came into the league as an outside linebacker. I was a Sam. But the reason I got moved to middle was because Barry Minter got hurt. They told me, “You’re playing Mike now.” And I’m like, “What? I’ve been playing Sam this whole time!” So, I had to learn it on the run there. And I just play where they tell me to play.

Those last couple years under Rocky Long at New Mexico, they had you all over the place. Do you feel like that really helped you adapt in the NFL?

You want athletes now. That’s what you want to draft. You can’t just draft a safety or a linebacker. You need a football player. And Rocky allowed me to play football. I returned punts, I returned kickoffs, I caught passes on offense. It was awesome, the things that Rocky let me do, and I appreciated that. I definitely think it helped me in my NFL career, the ability to do all those different things.

And playing under Bronco [Mendenhall], too. He’s making a big move out to Virginia. How do you think he’ll fare with the Cavaliers?

He’ll do great wherever he goes. His coaching style was awesome. He’d set up these crazy obstacle courses, with hills and everything, and he’d go out there and run them with us. Any time a coach goes out there and does stuff with you, guys respond to that. I also played for Gary Patterson for a couple years in college. Man, I had some pretty good coaches in my career.

Gary’s one of a kind. 

I didn’t play a whole lot my first couple years when he was there, but he’s so intense. He’d put these trash cans out there, and we’d do all our stuff against these cans. We didn’t hit a whole lot. It was weird, but now you look back at it, and it was innovative. Now you don’t want to hit during the week. You want to save guys’ bodies. He was wise beyond his years when it comes to that.

With the matchup that’s happening in the Super Bowl, you’ve got another terrific defensive player in Von Miller, and he’s exactly that – one of those guys who’s an athlete, and a football player first. Doesn’t seem like it matters where he plays, he’d make an impact.

Some guys are just good football players, and he falls into that category, obviously. His get off is phenomenal. He gets off the ball better than anybody in the NFL. He can drop back into pass coverage, and I didn’t really know he could do that until I saw him play. He’s just a great athlete. He makes plays, gets after the quarterback, and he’s a lot of fun to watch.

You’ve got a really special relationship with the city of Chicago. What is it about Chicago that makes that fanbase or that city so special as a whole?

They care about their football, man. They love defense. I don’t know if it’s because they’ve had so many great players, but they just love defense. It’s apparent all the time. The media talks about it. The fans talk about it. They just love it. Maybe because it’s a hardworking city. All the people on the South Side work every day, and work their tails off, but they love defense, and I was very fortunate because there isn’t a more coveted position on defense that you can play than linebacker for the Chicago Bears. It’s just a great place to be.

Did it set in after you retired that you were in that fraternity, that you were one of those guys, and you always will be now? 

When you play, you don’t really think about it. But now that I’ve retired, I can look back at the players who played before me, and the guys who come after you. They always want to compare you to somebody when you’re playing, and I always said it wasn’t fair because I haven’t done anything, not even close to what they’ve done. But looking back now, you can reflect since you’re not playing, and it’s a lot more clear now than it was when I was playing.

I went through Google just to stay fresh for our talk, and I’ve got to tell you, your first like 15 pages are all about your hair.

Dude, it’s crazy.

What’s the response been like?

It’s been good for the most part, but some people are making their jokes. A buddy of mine had the procedure done, and I figured I’d try it. If I didn’t like it, I could still shave it. That was always in my back pocket. But I like it. I see pictures of myself, and I look younger. I’m getting used to it. Other people maybe aren’t yet, but I am.

You had that opportunity to surprise some people with the 50 to 50 thing Marriott was doing. Can you put into words what it was like being in that house and it setting in that a family gets to bring 50 people to the Super Bowl?

What a great thing to win. I mean, 50 people to the Super Bowl, you can’t buy that. Bill’s a good man, and the kids were fun. But Sharon, the mom, she was amazing. I was worried when they did the video chat with their family in Chicago, they said they had a friend here, Brian, and that they wouldn’t recognize me, but it was really cool to hear their story. Listening to Bill talk to their doctors, he called a couple of them who helped with Will [Bill’s son] who had a brain tumor, and he invited them out to the game, too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oBEfQ9LcOs0

I can’t imagine someone calling me up and telling me, ‘Hey, I’ve got 50 tickets to the Super Bowl and I want you to go with.’ It just wouldn’t even register. It makes no sense.

Who does that? That’s like the coolest. The lottery is pretty cool, but this is up there. You can’t get 50 Super Bowl tickets. Players and coaches don’t even get 50 tickets.