Editing Linebacker (section)

==History==
[[Image:Germany Schulz.JPG|thumb|160px|The [[Michigan Wolverines football|University of Michigan]] is credited with creating the linebacker position, which was first played by [[Germany Schulz]]]]
Before the advent of the [[two-platoon system]] with separate units for offense and defense, the player who was the team's [[Center (American football)|center]] on offense was often, though not always, the team's linebacker on defense.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://footballfoundation.org/hof_search.aspx?hof=1392 | title=Mel Hein (1954) - Hall of Fame }}</ref> Hence, in contemporary football, one usually sees four defensive linemen to the offense's five or more. Most sources claim coach [[Fielding H. Yost]] and center [[Germany Schulz#Innovations|Germany Schulz]] of the [[Michigan Wolverines football|Michigan Wolverines]] invented the position.<ref>''Big Ten Football, Its Life and Times, Great Coaches, Players, and Games'', page 193, Mervin D. Hyman, Gordon S. White, Macmillan, 1977, {{ISBN|0-02-558070-1}}.</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2548264/the_newark_advocate/|title=First linebacker found|date=October 30, 1974|page=27|work=The Newark Advocate|access-date=June 4, 2015|via=[[Newspapers.com]]}} {{Open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/2548263/the_pantagraph/|title=More Trivia|date=September 10, 1967|page=28|work=The Pantagraph|access-date=June 4, 2015|via=[[Newspapers.com]]}} {{Open access}}</ref><ref>Dave Lewis, "Once Over Lightly," ''The Long Beach Independent'', July 29, 1954.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url={{College Football HoF/url|id=1242}}|title=Germany Schulz|website=footballfoundation.org}}</ref> Schulz was Yost's first linebacker in 1904 when he stood up from his usual position on the line. Yost was horrified at first, but came to see the wisdom in Schulz's innovation.<ref>Malcolm Bingay, "A Little About This and That: How Schulz Entered Michigan Still A Mystery," ''The Morning Herald'', May 1, 1951; "Frankly Speaking: Schulz' Great Grid Exploits Reviewed," ''The Long Beach Press-Telegram,'' April 17, 1951.</ref> [[William Thomas Dunn|William Dunn]] of [[Penn State Nittany Lions football|Penn State]] was another [[Big Ten Conference|Western Conference]] linebacker soon after Schulz.
However, there are various historical claims tied to the linebacker position, including some before 1904. For example, [[Percy Given]] of [[Georgetown Hoyas football|Georgetown]] is another center with a claim to the title "first linebacker," supposedly standing up behind the line well before Schulz in a game against [[Navy Midshipmen football|Navy]] in 1902.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4ck3AAAAIAAJ&q=percy+given|page=128|year=1962|title=Football Immortals|author=Alexander M. Weyand}}</ref> The first linebacker in the [[American South|South]] was [[Frank Juhan]], who played at [[Sewanee Tigers football|Sewanee]] during 1908–1910.<ref>{{cite web |title=Frank Juhan |url={{College Football HoF/url|id=1251}} |website=footballfoundation.org}}</ref>[[File:ChuckBednarik1952Bowman.jpg|thumb|left|180px|[[Chuck Bednarik]] of the [[Philadelphia Eagles]]]]In the East, [[Ernest Cozens]] of [[Penn Quakers football|Penn]] was "one of the first of the roving centers,"<ref name="Obit">{{cite news|title=Ernest B. Cozens|work=Pennsylvania Gazette|page= 751|date=June 28, 1929|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CO8sAAAAYAAJ}}</ref> another archaic term for the position, supposedly coined by [[Hank Ketcham (American football)|Hank Ketcham]] of [[Yale Bulldogs football|Yale]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Henry Ketcham |website=footballfoundation.org |url={{College Football HoF/url|id=1338}}}}</ref> [[Walter E. Bachman]] of [[Lafayette Leopards football|Lafayette]] was said to be "the developer of the 'roving center' concept".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.goleopards.com/sports/maroonclub/mtt/bachman_walter00.html|title=Walter Bachman|access-date=May 28, 2015|archive-date=May 28, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528223910/http://www.goleopards.com/sports/maroonclub/mtt/bachman_walter00.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Edgar Garbisch]] of [[Army Black Knights football|Army]] was credited with developing the "roving center method" of playing defensive football in 1921.<ref name="obit">{{cite news|title=Col. Edward Garbisch and His Wife, Bernice, Die|newspaper=Palm Beach Daily News|date=December 16, 1979|page=A1, A15|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1961&dat=19791216&id=JXItAAAAIBAJ&pg=1162,762173}}{{Dead link|date=March 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>  

In professional football, [[Cal Hubbard]] is credited with pioneering the linebacker position. He starred as a [[defensive tackle|tackle]] and [[end (American football)|end]], playing off the line in a style similar to that of a modern linebacker.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ueY58Dlnn30C&pg=PA62|author=Richard Whittingham|title=What a Game They Played: An Inside Look at the Golden Era of Pro Football|date=January 2001|page=62|publisher=U of Nebraska Press |isbn=0803298196}}</ref> The [[New York Giants]]' [[John Alexander (linebacker)|John Alexander]] is considered the first person to have played outside linebacker in the NFL.{{Citation needed|date=November 2022}}

The [[Chuck Bednarik Award]] is awarded annually by the [[Maxwell Football Club]] to the best defensive player in college football.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Goldstein |first=Richard |date=March 21, 2015 |title=Chuck Bednarik, Eagles' Man of Concrete, Dies at 89 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/22/sports/football/chuck-bednarik-famed-football-tough-guy-dies-at-89.html |work=New York Times}}</ref> [[Chuck Bednarik]] was selected with the [[List of first overall NFL draft picks|first overall pick]] of the [[1949 NFL draft]] by the [[Philadelphia Eagles]]. He is considered one of the hardest hitting and best linebackers in [[National Football League|NFL]] history. On November 20, 1960, Bednarik knocked [[1960 New York Giants season|New York Giants]] star halfback [[Frank Gifford]] unconscious with a tackle that was called "professional football's most notorious concussion". Bednarik's career-altering tackle of the Giants' star is remembered in football lore as "[[The Hit (Chuck Bednarik)|The Hit]]".<ref name="New York Times">{{cite news |last1=Anderson |first1=Dave |date=November 11, 2010 |title=Chuck Bednarik's Hit on Frank Gifford Still Echoes |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/21/sports/football/21anderson.html |work=New York Times}}</ref>
[[File:Nitschke_packers.jpg|thumb|160px|Ray Nitschke]]
[[Detroit Lions]] linebacker [[Joe Schmidt (American football)|Joe Schmidt]] was selected NFL's most valuable defensive player in 1960 and 1963. [[Ray Nitschke]] anchored the defense of [[Vince&nbsp;Lombardi]]'s [[Green Bay Packers]]. He played without his four front teeth. [[Kansas City Chiefs]] linebacker [[Bobby Bell]] was one of the first black outside linebackers in professional football.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |last=Star |first=Vahe Gregorian The Kansas City |date=2021-09-10 |title=COLUMN {{!}} Chiefs great Bobby Bell a monument to change |url=https://themercury.com/townnews/building_industry/column-chiefs-great-bobby-bell-a-monument-to-change/article_71376e9d-7917-5d98-ac9c-80fca4bcdf3a.html |access-date=2024-11-01 |website=The Mercury |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":4">{{Cite news |last=Taylor |first=Nate |date=July 21, 2021 |title=NFL 100: At No. 74, Bobby Bell blended rare athleticism, smarts as Chiefs' superstar linebacker |url=https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/2710350/2021/07/21/nfl-100-at-no-74-bobby-bell-blended-rare-athleticism-smarts-as-chiefs-superstar-linebacker/ |access-date=2024-11-01 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

=== Modern Super Bowl era ===
On January 15, 1967, the Chiefs lost [[Super Bowl I]] to Vince Lombardi's [[Green Bay Packers]] by a 35–10 score, forcing [[head coach]] [[Hank Stram]] to look for defensive players in the upcoming draft. Stram picked [[Willie Lanier]]. 

[[Chicago Bears]] linebacker [[Dick Butkus]] is viewed as the "gold standard by which other middle linebackers are measured".<ref name="Davis">{{cite news |last1=Davis |first1=Nate |date=November 4, 2010 |title=Who is NFL's greatest player ever? NFL Network reveals No. 1 Thursday night |url=http://content.usatoday.com/communities/thehuddle/post/2010/11/who-is-nfls-greatest-player-nfl-network-reveals-no-1-thursday-night/1 |access-date=July 25, 2017 |work=USA Today}}</ref> In 2009, the [[NFL Network]] named Butkus the most feared tackler of all time.  
[[File:Ray Lewis 2007.jpg|thumb|140px|left|Ray Lewis]]
[[Jack Lambert (American football)|Jack Lambert]] and [[Jack Ham]] played behind the [[Steel Curtain]] of the 1970s, and Lambert was recognized by the [[Pro Football Hall of Fame]] in 1990 as "the greatest linebacker of his era." Colts and Raiders linebacker [[Ted Hendricks]] won 4 Super Bowls and in 2019 the ''NFL Football Journal'' named him the best punt and kick blocker of all time.

Bears linebacker [[Mike Singletary]] was known as "the Heart of the Defense" for their [[Monsters of the Midway]] defense in the mid-1980s. New York Giants linebacker [[Lawrence Taylor]] is almost universally regarded as the greatest defensive player of all time.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mori |first=Dan |date=October 25, 2010 |title=NFL Power Rankings: Top 50 Greatest Defensive Players In NFL History |url=https://bleacherreport.com/articles/492690-the-top-50-greatest-defensive-players-in-nfl-history |access-date=2024-06-17 |website=Bleacher Report |language=en}}</ref>

Baltimore Ravens linebacker [[Ray Lewis]] is considered one of the greatest linebackers of all time.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Karpovich |first=Todd |date=2022-08-04 |title=Ravens Ray Lewis Named Greatest Linebacker of All-Time |url=https://www.si.com/nfl/ravens/news/ravens-ray-lewis-greatest-lb |access-date=2024-07-30 |website=Sports Illustrated Baltimore Ravens News, Analysis and More |language=en}}</ref> Lewis has the most [[Pro Bowl]] selections by a linebacker with 13. With 12 is former Chargers linebacker [[Junior Seau]], and with 11 is former Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker [[Derrick Brooks]].

Bears linebacker [[Brian Urlacher]] led his team in sacks in 2000, and led his team in interceptions in 2007.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.profootballhof.com/players/brian-urlacher/ | title=Brian Urlacher &#124; Pro Football Hall of Fame }}</ref> In 2013, Panthers linebacker [[Luke Kuechly]] became the youngest recipient of the [[AP NFL Defensive Player of the Year Award]] in its history.