A few days ago, Cincinnati Bengals middle linebacker Dhani Jones, who will be a free agent once the lockout is lifted, was invited to the NFL Network studios to rattle off a list of his top-10 linebackers in the NFL. On that list, he named himself as the seventh best linebacker in the league and left Chicago Bears middle linebacker Brian Urlacher out of the top-10.
When he was asked why Urlacher wasn't on the list, Jones responded by saying, "When was the last time Urlacher got off a block?"
On Thursday, Urlacher responded.
When asked about Jones' criticism, Urlacher said:
"I think we were drafted in the same class, right?.... I haven't heard anything about his since then," Urlacher told "The Waddle & Silvy Show" on WMVA-AM 1000. "I saw him on a TV show with a bow tie on, though. So I know him better for the way he dresses than what he does on the football field. Look, guys are going to talk. I've definitely had a lot worse things said about me publicly from guys, so I can live with it."
Urlacher left it at that. He spoke a little about Plaxico Burress, about the surface of Soldier Field, Jay Cutler and said that he hopes he has three or four more seasons left in the tank.
I'm sure that Jones meant nothing personal. The whole thing was probably a joke. However, just in case you didn't know, here is a breakdown of Jones' stats compared to Urlacher's.
Dhani Jones:
157 games, 889 tackles, 9.5 sacks and five interceptions
Brian Urlacher:
154 games, 1,059 tackles, 41.5 sacks and 18 interceptions