Dan Hampton

Hall of Fame defensive tackle and cornerstone of the Bears' 46 defense.

Daniel Oliver Hampton (born September 19, 1957) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive tackle for twelve seasons with the Chicago Bears from 1979 to 1990 in the National Football League (NFL). He was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002. He currently hosts the Bears postgame show on WGN Radio in Chicago.

Quick Facts

Position: Defensive tackle
Born: 19 September 1957
Birthplace: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S.
Draft year: 1979
Draft round: 1
Draft pick: 4
High school: Jacksonville (Jacksonville, Arkansas)
College: Arkansas (1975–1978)

Lore & Background

Hampton was a key defensive member of the Bears' Super Bowl XX win against the New England Patriots in 1986. He was selected to four Pro Bowls and was a versatile defensive lineman, making All-Pro at both defensive end and defensive tackle. He was 1st or 2nd team All-Pro in 1980, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1986, and 1988. In 1985, he was credited for inventing the 'Gatorade dump' in which a coach is drenched with the drink after a victory. He was named to the All-Madden team six times and to the 10th Anniversary All-Madden team.

Reader's Guide

Hampton played college football at Arkansas and was selected in the first round of the 1979 NFL draft by the Bears. He was part of a Razorback team that thumped the highly favored Oklahoma Sooners in the 1978 Orange Bowl by a score of 31–6. As a senior he was an All-American and was named the Southwest Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 1978. He was also named by the Houston Post the SWC Player of the Year that same season. In his career at Arkansas, he made a total of 237 tackles with 32 being behind the line of scrimmage and recovered six fumbles.

Did You Know?

Hampton was co-holder of the record for most sacks in a game with 12, as part of the Bears defense that sacked the Detroit Lions 12 times on December 16, 1984.
He was named NFL defensive player of the year by Pro Football Weekly in 1982.
Hampton was the bassist and vocalist for the band 'The Chicago Six' from 1987 to 1990.
He endured 11 knee surgeries during his football career and had two more just after finishing his 12th NFL season in 1990.