Bears' Kreutz a true throwback

Football is full of tough guys, but tougher guys still are at a premium in this nasty sport.

Hello, Olin Kreutz.

The best thing to say about any current Bears player is he fits into the roughhouse legend of this franchise.

You know, like right next to guys nicknamed Bulldog, Bronko and Super Crunch.

Kreutz belongs. Sometimes that's easy to forget because he's stuck in the middle of the offensive line, where players go to be anonymous.

(Actually, they beg to be anonymous so referees don't announce their number after penalties and TV analysts don't blame them for sacks.)

Now back to our regularly scheduled subject of good, generally clean, extremely tough football players.

Kreutz is so old school, the place has only one room. He's such a throwback, it's a lateral out of the single wing.

Bears offensive linemen practice in short pants on cold weekdays in Lake Forest. They play in short sleeves on colder Sundays in Soldier Field.

Somebody has to teach newcomers that's how it's done around here, and Olin Kreutz is the Bears' somebody.

Following Sunday's victory over the Eagles, Kreutz was asked about Bears receivers breaking open downfield in Mike Martz's offense.

“I don't know,” he said. “My head was in the dirt most of the time.”

Kreutz, who has played the upside-down position of center for 13 NFL seasons, had a reputation as a tough guy when drafted and has lived up to the scouting report.

The man is a man's man. Even at 33 with skills some say are receding, Kreutz remains a tough guy's tough guy few opponents are eager to mess with.

Sometimes Kreutz is noticeable on the field and usually he isn't. A couple of times Sunday he was impossible to miss when feisty became feistier and scrums became scrummier.

The first time, Kreutz engaged in a shoving match with Philadelphia defensive tackle Antonio Dixon after Bears running back Matt Forte was roughed up.

Later, Kreutz mixed it up with Philly linebacker Ernie Sims after Devin Hester took exception to some extracurricular rough stuff.

In hockey they're enforcers protecting their own. In baseball they're pitchers who retaliate when teammates are hit. In basketball they're power forwards applying hard fouls.

Kreutz is none of those. He's more like a respected, professional, veteran peace officer stepping into the fray to calm the unrest.

Former Bears with nicknames like Mongo, Samurai and Danimal must love watching Kreutz defend teammates like that.

Olin Kreutz could play with those guys and would be proud to. As a career Bear he'd also be proud that they would be proud to play with him.

Kreutz could have held his own next to Super Bowl champion Bears offensive linemen such as Jimbo Covert, Tom Thayer, Mark Bortz and Keith Van Horne, perhaps sharing time with consummate anchor/center Jay Hilgenberg.

Sometimes offensive linemen aren't appreciated until they retire. Kreutz should be appreciated now before he's on the sidelines in a couple of years standing next to Bears tough guys from bygone eras.

All Kreutz will need is a nickname like Bulldog, Bronko and Super Crunch, or like Mongo, Danimal and Samurai.

Come to think of it, maybe Olin Kreutz is so tough that he doesn't need a tough nickname to declare his toughness.

mimrem@dailyherald.com