Last week, being the big Packer fan I am, covered my all time favorite player Donald Driver. Its a shame, but he will almost certainly never make the NFL Hall of Fame. This week, I'd like to recall an arch nemesis in the Bears Charles Tillman. I actually think its possible one day that Tillman will make the hall of Fame, but it's still a long shot and he lacks some of the credentials that would help.
Selected Career Highlights
- 2x Pro Bowl Selection
- 1x All Pro
- 38 Interceptions
- 44 Forced Fumbles
- 8 Defensive TDs
- Record for most Forced Fumbles in a single game (4)
- Tied for most Force Fumbles in a single season (10)
- Signature Trademark play the "Peanut Punch" named after him, has been widely adopted in today's NFL
Other Notes
- His combined INT+Forced Fumbles (82) is 3rd all time behind Charles Woodson (98) and Rod Woodson (91)
- In Calvin Johnson's legendary 2012 Season (122 Catches for 1,964 Yards), he was held to 8 catches for 106 total yards and no TD's, on 25 targets across 2 games vs the Bears. When matched up with Tillman, his stats were only 5 catches on 14 targets, and all but one were on coverage designed to concede short routes.
- After his playing career, Tillman spent around 8 years working for the FBI.
Highlights
Why he'll likely never get into the NFL Hall of Fame
As I mentioned, I actually think there could be a day where Tillman gets the recognition he deserves. There is a quote in the article provided earlier that hits it on the head, "Charles Tillman might just be Darrelle Revis trapped in a zone defense." The Bears defense of that era was phenomenal with Brian Urlacher, Lance Briggs (will get a post of his own one day), and Tillman was a huge part of it. However, the Zone scheme doesn't always translate to individual accolades for defensive backs. The challenges that I see is that while Pro Bowls and All Pros are no guarantee to result in Hall of Fame inductions, they certainly help voters and the public's perception of players years after their careers are over. The thing going for Tillman is that he is best remembered for a signature play named after him that happens all the time in the NFL these days, so his impact on the league is still felt a decade after his career ended. Charles Tillman was an excellent player, and severely underrated and underappreciated. I do hope he makes the Hall of Fame one day, but I won't hold my breath.
Anyways, Go Pack Go forever.