Best NFL Players of All Time: Reggie White. Ranking the Top Players in History. Place a bet on an NFL football game now.

Best NFL Players of All Time: Reggie White

Everywhere he went, his enormous personality preceded him. Without a doubt, in a violent game, Reggie White was an adored character. Even some of the quarterbacks he destroyed loved him, as did his coaches and teammates.

Reggie White was a fantastic player for the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers, but his love and his life as a minister off the field almost overshadow that. He carried both of those teams high on his massive shoulders and gave them the credibility they had sorely missed for a long time.

White’s biggest playing recognition most likely came while wearing a Green Bay uniform and contributing three sacks to the team’s 35–21 victory against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XXXI. But when he was an Eagle from 1985 to 1992, he was definitely a superior player. White was just unstoppable because of his explosive mix of strength and muscle. Following a disastrous spring campaign in the United States Football League with the Memphis Showboats, he played his debut season in the NFL.

After playing in Memphis for 11.5 sacks that season, White inhaled deeply and put on his Eagles uniform. While he was with the Eagles, he added another 13 sacks and made a name for himself as the league’s top defensive end.

White gave defensive-line coach Chuck Dickerson in the USFL a lot of credit for his NFL success. At the University of Tennessee, White was a speed-and-power player who was a dominant talent. Redefining that talent, Dickerson taught White several of the maneuvers he had been doing for years. In his book In the Trenches, White stated, “Chuck taught me how to add nesse to my power and speed.” “My USFL years were the most enjoyable period of my career, in many ways.”

The spin move, the rip, and the club, among other maneuvers White mentioned, were mainstays in his arsenal and were practically unbeatable by opposing offensive linemen. He had no trouble reconciling his passion for humanity and his background as a pastor with the brutal game he dominated throughout his career. In 1987, he had the most sacks in the NFL with 21, and in 1988, he had the most with 18.

I had the opportunity to get down with Reggie and discuss his ability to overpower opponents with his speed and strength while he was in Chicago accepting an offseason award following the Packers’ victory over the Patriots. “I enjoy playing the game and I’m grateful that God has given me the ability to dominate my opponents,” White remarked. “This game does not contradict my beliefs in any way. It is merely a step in the testing procedure. The man on the other end of the call is someone I’m attempting to dominate. He is undoubtedly attempting to do the same to me. I never stop loving my opponent when I’m playing. I have to pass the test. I’m attempting to punish someone; can I still love them? Sure, I am able to.

Bruce Smith was dominating for the Buffalo Bills while White was doing the same for the Eagles and Packers. Though White was considered a more complete player due to his better power and dominance against the run, both players were considered the best defensive ends of their period. Smith was not the physical player that White was, even if he had more moves and might have been slightly quicker.

Having played offensive line for the Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos and winning three Super Bowls, ESPN commentator Mark Schlereth knew he would have an extremely difficult time against White. Schlereth remarked, “One of the best football players I’ve ever seen or lined up against was Reggie White.” He was quite domineering, and a team had to prepare for him for a week. When a line of attack entered the

find White’s alignment in order to at least have a chance of determining how he planned to thwart your offensive strategy.

Schlereth went on, “I’ll never forget one of the first times I ever had to face White on the field.” At the time, I was a player with the Washington Redskins, so I wasn’t really expecting to play against him. The Eagles would rotate him around the line at the moment so he would periodically come into contact with a guard. I’ll never forget the feeling I had when I realized he was facing me as soon as I emerged from the huddle. My first thought was, “What have I done to deserve this butt-whupping?”

White would go on to rank among the most important players in the history of the Green Bay Packers. After 25 years under Vince Lombardi’s coaching, the Packers had devolved into just another ordinary team.

During that period, they had only six winning seasons and two postseason trips. More than that, African-American players in Green Bay had a reputation for having little to offer in the way of outside income, social opportunities, and overall quality of life, and many had voiced their reservations about this.

However, White surprised the league by signing a four-year, $17 million contract with the Packers when free agency opened up in the NFL after the 1992 season. With the aid of quarterback Brett Favre, White’s standing as one of the industry’s leaders enabled the Packers to resurrect the team and bring in additional African-American talents like Sean Jones, Andre Rison, and Keith Jackson.

With 198 sacks at the end of his career, White was second only to Smith with 200. His sudden sarcoidosis-related death in 2004 at the age of 43 was as unexpected as it was shocking. Happy White was maybe the best defensive end of his, or any, period, having dominated his game.

Best NFL Players of All Time: Reggie White Stats

Regular Season

Year	Age	Tm	Pos	No.	G	GS	Int	Yds	TD	Lng	PD	FF	Fmb	FR	Yds	TD	Sk	Comb	Solo	Ast	TFL	QBHits	Sfty	AV
1985	24	PHI	LDE	91	13	12			0				0	2	0	0	13	100						7
1986	25	PHI	RDT/LDE	92	16	16			0			1	0	0	0	0	18	98						19
1987	26	PHI	LDE	92	12	12			0			4	0	1	70	1	21	76						15
1988	27	PHI	LDE	92	16	16			0			1	0	2	0	0	18	133						19
1989	28	PHI	LDE	92	16	16			0			3	0	1	10	0	11	123						18
1990	29	PHI	LDE	92	16	16	1	33	0	33		4	0	1	0	0	14	83						17
1991	30	PHI	LDE	92	16	16	1	0	0	0		2	0	3	8	0	15	100						19
1992	31	PHI	LDE	92	16	16			0			3	0	1	37	1	14	81						15
1993	32	GNB	LDE	92	16	16			0			3	0	2	10	0	13	79						15
1994	33	GNB	LDE	92	16	15			0			2	0	1	0	0	8	49	35	14				15
1995	34	GNB	LDE	92	15	13			0			2	0	0	0	0	12	42	31	11				15
1996	35	GNB	LDE	92	16	16	1	46	0	46		3	2	3	2	0	8.5	39	30	9				18
1997	36	GNB	LDE	92	16	16			0			0	0	2	0	0	11	46	31	15				15
1998	37	GNB	LDE	92	16	16			0			4	0	0	0	0	16	46	33	13				16
1999		Missed season – Retired
2000	39	CAR	LDE	92	16	16	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	1	0	0	5.5	16	15	1	5			8
Career					232	228	3	79	0	46	1	33	2	20	137	2	198	1111	175	63	5			231
8 yrs		PHI			121	120	2	33	0	33		18	0	11	125	2	124	794		0				129
6 yrs		GNB			95	92	1	46	0	46		14	2	8	12	0	68.5	301	160	62				94
1 yr		CAR			16	16	0	0	0	0	1	1	0	1	0	0	5.5	16	15	1	5			8

Playoffs

Year	Age	Tm	Pos	G	GS	Int	Yds	TD	Lng	PD	FF	Fmb	FR	Yds	TD	Sk	Comb	Solo	Ast	TFL	QBHits	Sfty
1988*+	27	PHI	LDE	1	1			0			0	0	0	0	0	1
1989*+	28	PHI	LDE	1	1			0			0					1
1990*+	29	PHI	LDE	1	1			0			0	0	0	0	0	0
1992*	31	PHI	LDE	2	2			0			0	0	0	0	0	2						1
1993*	32	GNB	LDE	2	2			0			0	0	0	0	0	2
1994*	33	GNB	LDT	2	2			0			0	0	0	0	0	1	5	5	0
1995*+	34	GNB	DE/L,LDE	3	2			0			0	0	0	0	0	1	2	2	0
1996*	35	GNB	LDE	3	3			0			0	0	0	0	0	3	3	3	0
1997*	36	GNB	LDE	3	3			0			0	0	0	0	0	1	6	3	3
1998*+	37	GNB	LDE	1	1			0			0	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	0
Career				19	18			0							0	12	18	15	3			1
6 yrs		GNB		14	13			0							0	8	18	15	3
4 yrs		PHI		5	5			0							0	4						1

 

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