A humbled and contrite Dan Hampton was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, the 25th member of the Bears’ organization to be honored.
Buffalo quarterback Jim Kelly, Raiders tight end Dave Casper, Pittsburgh wide receiver John Stallworth and late coach George Allen join Hampton in the Class of 2002 that will be inducted into the Hall in Canton, Ohio, on Aug. 3. Hampton said former Bears defensive end Ed O’Bradovich will be his presenter.
Hampton was arrested in his hometown of Cabot, Ark., Monday night and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. It was his third DWI arrest in the past six years.
“I’ve had a real strenuous year and I’ve made some bad decisions in my life,” Hampton said. “I made one this past week and I regret it to the maximum.”
Hampton acknowledged being concerned that the incident would have an effect on the Hall of Fame selection board’s decision.
“Make no mistake, this doesn’t diminish my mistake,” he said. “But the great thing about the American people is they realize nobody’s perfect. Everyone, sooner or later, is going to make a mistake.
“I want to apologize to everyone I have been associated with personally, and all the great fans and friends and family who have been very supportive of me this week. I can’t tell you how many folks have called and said, `Hey you made a mistake. Hold your head high and go on with your life.”‘
The 38-member selection board, which includes the Tribune’s Don Pierson, bypassed Bill Parcells, who coached the New York Giants to Super Bowl titles in the 1986 and 1990 postseasons and took the New England Patriots to a Super Bowl five years ago. A former player, coach or contributor must receive 80 percent of the votes to be selected.
While discussing his recent legal problems, Hampton made note of the fact that Saturday was Groundhog Day.
“After that [arrest] happened Monday, I wanted to stick my head in the ground and never come out of the hole,” he said. “My mind has been awful heavy this week. I made a mistake and I regret it greatly.”
The Bears’ 25 inductees are the most of any NFL team.
A first-round draft pick (fourth overall) out of Arkansas in 1979, Hampton was the lynchpin of the 1985 Bears defense that allowed only 198 points and shut out two playoff opponents before walloping the Patriots 46-10 in Super Bowl XX.
Hampton joins Walter Payton and Mike Singletary as the only members of the Super Bowl champs in Canton. Defensive end Richard Dent, MVP of Super Bowl XX and the Bears’ career leader in sacks with 124.5, becomes eligible next year.
Hampton didn’t set out on his path to Canton until relatively late in life.
“Until the 11th grade, I was walking around with a saxophone,” he said. “The coaches were looking at me like I was from Mars. Bill Reed got me out of the band and got me started in football. He went on to win three or four state championships. How lucky was I to have this guy take an interest in me?
“Who knows? I would have been like any other idiot from Arkansas with a saxophone, like you know who,” Hampton added with a laugh, referring to former President Bill Clinton.
Hampton was an All-American at the University of Arkansas and Southwestern Conference Defensive Player of the Year as a senior.
“Jimmy Johnson [an assistant under Frank Broyles] was the guy who recruited me and coached me my first two years, then Lou Holtz came in,” Hampton recalled. “Then [with the Bears] it was Mike Ditka and Buddy Ryan.”
He has fond memories of Dale Haupt, his position coach with the Bears.
“I can’t tell you how much Dale Haupt meant to me because he was such a taskmaster,” Hampton said. “We played every down. I never came off the field. Guys today play five plays and raise their hand and come out for five.”
In 1985 the Bears’ defensive front included Hampton, Steve McMichael, William “Refrigerator” Perry and Dent, who had 17 sacks that season.
By 1988 Al Harris took over at left defensive end, and Hampton moved inside to tackle. Hampton rarely practiced at that point because so much of the cartilage had been surgically removed from his knees but he continued to deliver big plays on game day.
“John Levra [a former Bears defensive assistant] was a technical guy,” Hampton said. “When I started getting beat up at the end, he showed me a lot of ways to kind of avoid the bad steps and still be able to play.
“I blocked three or four kicks a year. Buddy Ryan made us take great pride in it. Alan Page, as great as he was, had great technique and he showed me a lot about blocking kicks.”
Hampton wound up his career in 1990, having played 157 games.
“The attitude Dan brought to the game was incredible,” Singletary said. “The next thing is the value he had on the team. He was the leading force. Without Dan it would have been very difficult for us to do what we did as a defense. He made all the difference in the world.”
Singletary and fellow linebackers Otis Wilson and Wilber Marshall were able to maneuver more effectively because of the way the line played in front of them. The domino effect carried over into the secondary, where cornerbacks Mike Richardson and Leslie Frazier, and safeties Dave Duerson and Gary Fencik were free to roam.
“Dan and Steve McMichael complemented each other very well,” Singletary said. “The strength of any team is on the inside. If you cannot penetrate the inside, you have problems.”
Hampton can’t understand why a Bears defense generally regarded as one of the NFL’s best has only two members in the Hall of Fame.
“All I see is all these Steelers who keep getting in,” he said of the 1970s Steelers, who have four members of their “Steel Curtain” defense enshrined: Joe Greene, Jack Lambert, Jack Ham and Mel Blount. “You look at the stats and our defenses were, I think, quite a bit more effective than they were.”
But the “Steel Curtain” Steelers won four Super Bowls in six years. The Bears won one.
“Winning Super Bowls has a huge bearing on who goes in the Hall of Fame,” Hampton said. “I think that’s unfortunate.”
Singletary agrees that the Bears’ limited postseason success hurts their legacy.
“It’s unfortunate . . . Give us the credit we’re due,” he said. “We won football games week in and week out.”
The Bears had an 85-29 record when Hampton was healthy enough to play during his 12-year career. They were 8-16 when he did not play.
“It kind of embarrasses me because I didn’t want to miss any games,” he said. “Obviously with 12 knee operations you’re not going to play every down every game.”
Hampton insisted the journey to Canton was more satisfying than the actual enshrinement:
“The fact that I was able to be on those great teams for those 12 years was enough, it really was. But you get around people like Ted Hendricks and Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers, people who have had a huge influence on the game–to be mentioned in that company is great.”
Dominate defense
During Dan Hampton’s 12-year career, the Bears’ defense was consistently among the NFL’s best. Over the course of those 12 seasons, the Bears led the NFL in five major statistical categories:
Rushing yards allowed
NO TEAM YPG
1. BEARS 105.5
2. Pittsburgh 110.9
3. San Francisco 111.3
Rushing touchdowns allowed
NO TEAM TDS
1. BEARS 117
2. San Francisco 134
3. Philadelphia 139
Sacks per year
NO TEAM SPG
1. BEARS 49.7
2. Oakland 49.4
3. Philadelphia 46.9
Points allowed
NO TEAM PTS
1. BEARS 16.8
2. San Francisco 17.8
3. N.Y. Giants 18.5
Total yards allowed
NO TEAM YDS
1. BEARS 288.0
2. N.Y. Giants 307.2
3. Oakland 309.4
Hampton’s career
YEAR GAMES STARTS SACKS
1979 16 16 4.5
1980 16 16 11.5
1981 16 16 9
1982 9 9 7
1983 11 11 5
1984 15 15 11.5
1985 16 16 5.5
1986 16 16 9.5
1987 8 8 3.5
1988 16 16 9.5
1989 4 4 2
1990 12 8 0
By the numbers
Bears’ record with Hampton,
1983-90: 85-29
Bears’ record without Hampton, 1983-90: 8-16 (includes playoff games)
%%
%%
