Chicago Bears: 15 greatest linebackers of all time

More commonly known as “Riverboat Ron” around the NFL, Ron Rivera was drafted by the Bears in the second round of the 1984 NFL Draft.  Rivera would play for the Bears for a total of nine years beginning in 1984 and ending in 1992. Come 1988, he’d take over the starting role full-time, a position he held for three seasons.

Rivera’s most dominant stretch in Chicago as a player was from 1987 until 1990. During this time, he’d have eight interceptions and five sacks. Despite not being a guy who was known for filling up the stat sheet, Rivera knew how to play football.

After his retirement in 1992, Rivera would continue to stick around the City of Chicago and work in multiple different industries such as television, However, he’d return to the Bears in 1997 as a defensive quality control coach. Come 2004, Rivera would end up being named the defensive coordinator of the Bears.

Upon assuming the defensive coordinator position for the Bears, Rivera would be the driving force behind some of the best defenses that the NFL would see in the early 2000s. His most notable accomplishment as a coach for the Bears was leading the Bears to the Super Bowl in 2006, where despite losing, the defense still gave up just 15.9 points per game, good for third in the NFL.

Towards the end of the 2007 NFL season, the Bears and Rivera would enter contract negotiations. However, the two sides would be unable to come to a new deal. Eventually, due to contract disputes, the two sides would agree to part ways.

Despite not being the biggest, fastest or strongest guy on the field, Rivera poured his heart and soul into making the Bears great both as a player and as a coach. It’s clear that had he gotten the opportunity to start as a rookie, he would’ve had a bigger impact than he originally did.