papazoid Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 (edited) #1 Greatest NFL Linebacker of All Time: Lawrence Taylor Lawrence Taylor was a physical force of unreal size, strength, and speed. L.T. was in full-blown attack mode at all times. Beyond his natural physical and mental capabilities he was backed by the perfect storm of prowess, intensity, and strategy, Lawrence Taylor was named the NFL Defensive Player of the Year three separate seasons and took home League MVP honors in 1986. As a pass rusher, Lawrence Taylor was built to wreak havoc coming off the edge. L.T. perfected the art of the strip-sack where he would crush a pocket passer and hammer out the football in one fell swoop. Within moments, Lawrence Taylor would scoop up the loose ball and gallop toward the end zone for six. As a sack artist, L.T. finished up his career with 132.5 sacks, which is still good for eighth of all time in 2010. In the running game, there was no avoiding Taylor because he could blow up pulling linemen going strong side and also chase down any vain attempts to run away from #56. Due to of his explosiveness and power, Taylor was a match up nightmare for bulky offensive tackles and pesky blocking backs, alike. http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ycn-7505900 Edited May 2, 2013 by papazoid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Lawrence Taylor in my mind. Butkus maybe second, but I fear he may not have enough speed to play like that in today's game (I'm not really sure about that though). LT and Butkus just struck fear in opposing players and coaches all week leading up to the game and all during the game, and consistently made both highlight reel plays and good solid plays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris heff Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Lawrence Taylor. I would have to agree with this. I lived in NYC during his entire career watched a lot of games. Taylor had that rare ability to just take over a game. Kind of like Micheal Jordan did. Taylor was scary good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Lawrence Taylor in my mind. Butkus maybe second, but I fear he may not have enough speed to play like that in today's game (I'm not really sure about that though). LT and Butkus just struck fear in opposing players and coaches all week leading up to the game and all during the game, and consistently made both highlight reel plays and good solid plays. Pretty much this. Butkus was an absolute monster. LT was an absolute monster with the added bonus of being coked out of his mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jobu Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 #1 Greatest NFL Linebacker of All Time: Lawrence Taylor Lawrence Taylor was a physical force of unreal size, strength, and speed. L.T. was in full-blown attack mode at all times. Beyond his natural physical and mental capabilities he was backed by ...Copious amounts of Cocaine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billsrcursed Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 It's LT. Honestly, it's not that close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
filthymcnasty08 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 It's LT. Honestly, it's not that close. This. He completely changed the game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBillsMagic1 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 I have to go old school on this one and go with Mike Stratton, form back in the 60's. He was a punisher (what older Bills fan doesn't remember the hit on Keith Lincoln in the championship game! First name i thought of as well. Hit heard round the world!!!!!!!! There go the ribs keith.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stealth Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 I love Talley too, but he is a bit overrated by Bills fans because they loved his attitude. Cornelius Bennett was better than Talley. Takeo Spikes was better too. Bryce Paup had a great season. I think it's between Bennett and Spikes. Sam Cowart had the potential to be one of the best lbs in the game before his unfortunate injury. Spikes was also a monster before his injury. For as much crap as he wrongly got from Bills fans London Fletcher was/is a pretty damn good lb as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. WEO Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Lawrence Taylor in my mind. Butkus maybe second, but I fear he may not have enough speed to play like that in today's game (I'm not really sure about that though). LT and Butkus just struck fear in opposing players and coaches all week leading up to the game and all during the game, and consistently made both highlight reel plays and good solid plays. Agree 100%. Hands down it's (the real) LT. Over Lewis. No one struck fear into a QB's mind like Taylor. Plus there was nothing fake about him--he was crazy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
White Linen Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 I think LT was the best but Derrick Thomas was awesome. I believe if he would have played a few more years he would have been the all time best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 It's LT. Honestly, it's not that close. How about ray lewis on cocaine? Then it's a toss up.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max Fischer Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Ray Lewis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Last Guy on the Bench Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 (edited) Ray Lewis. I love watching Ray Lewis play, and I think he is the 2nd best player (all positions) of the last 10+ years, behind only (gag) Tom Brady. (Not looking for a Brady fight here, but I just think he's owned the league in a way no one else has this century, and I hate that I think that.) That being said, LT is miles above Lewis in my mind. That dude owned the field. I can't think of another defensive player in my lifetime (watching since the 70s) who could mentally and physically dominate the game like him, and the ones who were close like Bruce and Reggie, weren't linebackers. IMO, LT is the best overall NFL player of the last 40 years. Never saw Butkus really, so I can't comment on him. I know he was tough and crazy, but so was LT, and I can't imagine Butkus was nearly as much of an athletic freak as LT. Edited May 2, 2013 by Last Guy on the Bench Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DC Tom Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Sam Cowart had the potential to be one of the best lbs in the game before his unfortunate injury. Spikes was also a monster before his injury. For as much crap as he wrongly got from Bills fans London Fletcher was/is a pretty damn good lb as well The defensive series just before he was injured in Tampa was one of the most unbelievable performances I've ever seen. He dominated that series like LT used to... ...then they cheap-shotted his knee. Bastards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prickly Pete Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Lawrence Taylor. Greatest player of my lifetime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Barbarian Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Brandon Spoon YES! loved that guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
San Jose Bills Fan Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 There are two different types of linebackers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kelly the Dog Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 There are two different types of linebackers. All-time great ones and sucky ones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuffaloBill Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 Lawrence Taylor redefined the position. He was someone that the opposing team had to have a plan for one very play. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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